All the times creative directors have left the scene The most unexpected farewells from the stars of the fashion world
Ever since Alessandro Michele announced his departure from Gucci, confirming a rumor that had preceded him by a few days, the fashion world has been in a frenzy. Both because of the big surprise, this announcement caused and because of the uncertainty of who will take his place. Although we will have to wait a while to find out who his successor will be, the history of the brand teaches us that this kind of coup de théâtre is certainly nothing new. Just think of the astonishment caused by the choice of Tom Ford when he announced in 2004 that he was leaving Gucci to devote himself to his eponymous brand after ten years of brilliant creative direction characterized by glamour, elegance, and sensuality. Not to mention the work of Frida Giannini after Tom Ford, who was replaced by Alessandro Michele himself after ten years of creative director of the Italian fashion house. Legend has it that on this occasion, the Roman designer prepared his first collection (FW15) in just a few days.
To conclude this enumeration of memorable and unforgettable farewells, we cannot omit the dismissal of John Galliano from the management of the Maison Dior (1996-2011) after a series of anti-Semitic statements by the brilliant designer who, despite this most regrettable interlude, remains one of the most influential names in the hyperbolic and phantasmagorical shows. Speaking of big names: The breakup of Nicolas Ghesquière and Balenciaga was another seismic moment in fashion, accompanied by a move from the Kering group to LVMH after renewing the brand image of the "master of us all" - as Christian Dior had called him - thanks to an aesthetic of style mixes and futuristic declinations of clothing between anime and hyperspace. Thus Ghesquière had spoken without many qualms about the misunderstandings that later led him to leave: «Some people I have worked with over the years have never understood how fashion works. They keep saying they love fashion, but they never really understood that fashion is not like a yogurt or a piece of furniture that you can define as products in the purest sense of the word. These people just do not understand the complex and all-encompassing process of fashion, and so now they turn it into something that is easily replicable and shallow». Finally, Marc Jacobs deserves a mention in this list, who left the creative direction of Louis Vuitton womenswear just before Ghesquière arrived, after sixteen years of brilliant collections at the end of an experience that began in 1997 and ended with SS2014, characterized by a distinct theatricality typical of the New York designer.
