RICK OWENS

Los Angeles designers Rick Owens opened his namesake label in1994, creating asymmetrical dresses, sculptural t-shirts and signature super distressed leather jacket that ispired feverish devotion among fans like madonna and Courtney Love.

His men's and women's lines Drkshdw and Lilies deliver pret-a-porter interpretations of his romantic brand of avant-garde rock couture. Owens is a romantic at heart. His skill at mixing light and dark with hard and soft has earned him a cult-like following of faithful consumers and critics who avidly lap up every Rick Owens collection. Owens has become the industry go-to label for softly luxurious leather jackets, Cimmerian colours, sinuous drapery and fierce footwear. Most recently Owens has shown a softer glamorous side while still staying true to his monochromatic elegance. While his hefty price tags enable him to sit alongside his haute fashion contemporaries, Owens treats his materials with a great deal less reverence. Rabbit fur is formed into macabre rabbit shaped bags, cashmere is ripped and laddered and the finest chiffon is chewed and frayed. He also uses opulent fabrics such as sable to line his jackets; there to please no one but the wearer.