Raf Simons
Belgian fashion designer (born 1968)
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Key Takeaways
- Raf Jan Simons ( Dutch pronunciation: [rɑf ˈsimɔns] ; born 12 January 1968) is a Belgian fashion designer.
- He was creative director at Jil Sander (2005–2012), Christian Dior (2012–2015), and Calvin Klein (2016–2018).
- Early life and education Raf Simons was born on 12 January 1968 in Neerpelt, Belgium, to Jacques Simons, an army night watchman, and Alda Beckers, a house cleaner.
- During this time, Simons congregated at Antwerp cafe Witzli-Poetzli with the likes of Olivier Rizzo, Willy Vanderperre, David Vandewal and then-girlfriend Veronique Branquinho to discuss fashion, namely Helmut Lang and Martin Margiela.
- Van Beirendonck took him to Paris Fashion Week and that was when Simons first saw a fashion show—Martin Margiela’s all-white show in 1991—which inspired Simons to turn to fashion design.
Raf Jan Simons (Dutch pronunciation: [rɑf ˈsimɔns]; born 12 January 1968) is a Belgian fashion designer. Beginning in furniture design, Simons launched his own menswear label in 1995. He was creative director at Jil Sander (2005–2012), Christian Dior (2012–2015), and Calvin Klein (2016–2018). As of 1 April 2020, he is the co-creative director of Prada, in partnership with Miuccia Prada.
Early life and education
Raf Simons was born on 12 January 1968 in Neerpelt, Belgium, to Jacques Simons, an army night watchman, and Alda Beckers, a house cleaner.
Simons graduated in Industrial Design and Furniture Design from LUCA School of Arts in Genk in 1991. During this time, Simons congregated at Antwerp cafe Witzli-Poetzli with the likes of Olivier Rizzo, Willy Vanderperre, David Vandewal and then-girlfriend Veronique Branquinho to discuss fashion, namely Helmut Lang and Martin Margiela.
He began working as a furniture designer for various galleries, having previously interned at the design studio of Walter Van Beirendonck between 1991 and 1993.
Van Beirendonck took him to Paris Fashion Week and that was when Simons first saw a fashion show—Martin Margiela’s all-white show in 1991—which inspired Simons to turn to fashion design.
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