Oscar de la Renta, real name Óscar Arístides Renta Fiallo, was born on July 22, 1932, in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Having received an international fashion education, he left the Dominican Republic at age 18 to study painting at the San Fernando Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Madrid. Once there, he began work as an illustrator for fashion houses, which eventually led to the position of assisting Spain’s leading designer Cristóbal Balenciaga, who he had a mentor-apprentice relationship with. In 1961, he settled in Paris and assisted Lanvin-Castillo’s head designer, Antonio del Castilla. Moving to New York City two years later, he started designing couture and ready-to-wear collections for Elizabeth Arden. 

 

de la Renta established his company, named after himself, in 1965. His gypsy- and Russian-inspired collections helped him garner attention in the late ’60s and early ’70s.  The president of the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) from 1973 to 1976 and from 1986 to 1988, de la Renta received the council’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 1990. His work was also popular in Latin America and the Dominican Republic. Extremely charitable and receiving many personal achievements, de la Renta won the Juan Pablo Duarte Order of Merit and the Order of Cristóbal Colón. The first Dominican to do so for a French couture house, de la Renta designed for the house of Balmain from 1993 to 2002. 

 

In addition to women’s clothing, de la Renta launched a fragrance, accessory, home decor, menswear, and fine china line. Despite battling cancer for the final eight years of his life, his company continued to grow, 50% to be exact. His last notable creations include the ivory tulle bridal gown won by British-based human rights lawyer Amal Alamuddin when she married George Clooney in 2014. While de la Renta sadly passed away on October 20, 2014, his company, creations, and designs continue to live on.