My love for French deisgner Jean Paul Gaultier sparked as soon as a tiny, one-digit-aged version of Lela London found out he invented the cone bra. That love grew exponentially after I read the following interview with Opening Ceremony. It is a must read, my dear.
On his pop hit from the Eighties- “How To Do That” (don’t worry, I’ve attached the video at the end!):
“I sold around 30,000 records – almost made it to the Top 50, but I think that was my last foray into the music business as a musician. I prefer to dress the stars.”On his first impression of Madonna:
“The first time I saw Madonna was on Top of the Pops. She was singing “Holiday,” and she had a fabulous look. (I actually thought that she was English because she was so stylish.) She was into the same things that I was doing at the time, like crosses, oversized jewelry, and fishnets. The second time I saw her live was at the first MTV awards in New York at Radio City Music Hall. It must have been 1984. She sang “Like A Virgin” in a wedding dress and was simulating “self contentment” or “self satisfaction,” to put it euphemistically. The audience was mostly business people, who were horrified. There were just a few young fans–and me, who absolutely loved it. That is when I realized that she couldn’t care less what others thought of her, and I also saw how powerful she was.”On the young Jean Paul Gaultier:
“I used to buy all the magazines, look at the collections, and then do my own. And if Dior or Cardin had 300 outfits, I would have 310. I even wrote my own reviews.”On being an 18-year-old apprentice for Pierre Cardin:
“I learned about freedom from Mr. Cardin. There was an absolute freedom in his studio… He had assistants from all over the world — it was the first time I tried Japanese food with my colleagues from work. It was a great time, and it taught me that you have to have a free spirit to succeed.”On the source of inspiration:
“Inspiration is never a problem; I usually have too much of it. I sometimes want to say too many things at once. Everything I see can inspire me: the cinema, theater, music.”
Don’t worry, I didn’t forget the video: