Oscar de la Renta

In 1967, de Renta got married to Francoise de Langlade, who was an editor-in-chief of French Vogue. It was her third marriage and the marriage ended when she died in 1983 due to cancer.

De Renta got married for the second time to Annette Engelhard in 1989. He had stepchildren from both the marriages and has an adopted son, Moises de la Renta.

He passed away due to cancer on 20th October 2014 at Kent, Connecticut.

De Renta was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, to a Dominican mother, Maria Antonia Fiallo, and a Puerto Rican father, Oscar Avelino de la Renta. He belonged to a family of poets, scholars, mayors and highly successful individuals.

He was raised in a middle-class environment and his father worked as an insurance agent. At the age of 17, Renta was sent to Spain to Academia de San Fernando. He aspired to become an abstract painter.

De Renta soon entered the fashion world and started designing for major Spanish fashion houses. He was hired as an apprentice by Spanish fashion genius, Cristobal Balenciaga, who became his mentor.

In 1959, de Renta left Spain to assist Antonio Castillo at Lanvin in Paris. He was also recruited by Christian Dior while he was still in Paris. During this time his work was highly influenced by Balenciaga.

He visited New York City in 1962 and while he was at a ball with his friend Count Lanfranco Rasponi, he was offered a job by American fashion designer Elizabeth Arden.

In 1963, he made his debut with the brand Elizabeth Arden and one of his designs was taken up by Helmut Newton for the following year’s American Vogue edition.

Despite the success that he gathered at Elizabeth Arden, de Renta joined Jane Derby, with a 33 percent stake in the company in 1965. The same year heiress Anne Ford wore his embroidered, ermine-edged wedding dress.

Soon, he became famous with Vogue and his photograph was published in the 1967 edition. He also won the Coty Award for his ‘Road of Spices’ collection that he launched in that year.

Besides designing haute couture for celebrities and Vogue features, working for the most reputed fashion house ‘Balmain’ and designing accessories and a homeware line, de Renta’s fragrance ‘OSCAR’ brought him much fame and many prestigious awards.