Chado Ralph Rucci
Encyclopedia
Ralph Rucci is an American fashion designer and artist. He is known in particular for Chado Ralph Rucci, a luxury clothing and accessories line. Rucci's clothing designs have appeared in a number of major exhibitions, and he has won some significant fashion-industry awards. He is the subject of a recent documentary, and he and his clothing have received positive critical response in the fashion press.
from Temple University
. At the age of 21, he moved to New York to study at the Fashion Institute of Technology
and later trained under Halston
and a Balenciaga
patternmaker. He had his first formal show at New York's Westbury Hotel in 1981, but launched Chado Ralph Rucci over a decade later, in 1994, and began showing at New York Fashion Week
in 1999. In 2002, Rucci became the first American designer in more than 60 years to be invited to show in Paris by the French Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture (the only other designer to be so honored was Mainbocher
), and he showed his haute couture
collections in Paris for the next three seasons. He has twice been nominated for the Council of Fashion Designers of America
's Womenswear Designer of the Year Award. Rucci is also a painter, who has exhibited in art galleries throughout the U.S.
From the beginning of his career, Rucci was inspired by the style of such fashion icons as Elsa Peretti
(for her "biomorphic nature") and Pauline de Rothschild
(for "creating harmony out of disorder"). Rucci's influences also include the painters Cy Twombly
, Franz Kline
, Antoni Tàpies
and Francis Bacon
, sculptor Louise Nevelson, Japanese symbolism, and the designer James Galanos
. Rucci's "individual mind" has been praised, as well as his "distinct point of view," as The New York Times
noted in a review on a 2007 Rucci exhibition at the Fashion Institute of Technology
.
In 2007, fashion historian Valerie Steele
wrote The Art of Weightlessness, an illustrated monograph published by the Yale University Press
on the occasion of Rucci's exhibition at the FIT
Museum. In 2008, the documentary Ralph Rucci: A Designer and His House, narrated by Martha Stewart
, premiered on the Sundance Channel.
According to Cathy Horyn
of The New York Times
, "Mr. Rucci’s clothes have a devotion to elegance that can feel as pitiless as a sermon on a hot summer day," while Robin Givhan
of The Washington Post
wrote that "Rucci's clothes are aspirational in every sense of the word. They ooze luxury from 100 paces, yet they are not ostentatious. They look expensive because every seam is perfect, every button exactly placed, every skirt has just the right lift. No dress of his would dare wrinkle."
Rucci's gowns are included in the permanent collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum
in London, the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art
in New York, DeYoung Museum in San Francisco, The Philadelphia Museum of Art, Phoenix Art Museum
in Phoenix, and Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art, among others.
Life and career
Rucci was born and raised in Philadelphia, and holds a degree in philosophyPhilosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
from Temple University
Temple University
Temple University is a comprehensive public research university in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. Originally founded in 1884 by Dr. Russell Conwell, Temple University is among the nation's largest providers of professional education and prepares the largest body of professional...
. At the age of 21, he moved to New York to study at the Fashion Institute of Technology
Fashion Institute of Technology
The Fashion Institute of Technology, generally known as FIT, is a State University of New York college of art, business, design, and technology connected to the fashion industry, with an urban campus located on West 27th Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in the Chelsea neighborhood of...
and later trained under Halston
Halston
Roy Halston Frowick, also known as Halston was a clothing designer of the 1970s. His long dresses or copies of his style were popular fashion wear in mid-1970s discotheques.-Early life and career:...
and a Balenciaga
Balenciaga
Balenciaga is a fashion house founded by Cristóbal Balenciaga, a Basque designer, born in the Basque Country, Spain. He had a reputation as a couturier of uncompromising standards and was referred to as "the master of us all" by Christian Dior. His bubble skirts and odd, feminine, yet ultra-modern...
patternmaker. He had his first formal show at New York's Westbury Hotel in 1981, but launched Chado Ralph Rucci over a decade later, in 1994, and began showing at New York Fashion Week
New York Fashion Week
The semi-annual New York Fashion Week, branded Mercedes-Benz FashionWeek in 2009, is held in February and September of each year in New York City. It is one of four major fashion weeks held around the world .-History:The first New York Fashion Week, then called Press Week, was the world's first...
in 1999. In 2002, Rucci became the first American designer in more than 60 years to be invited to show in Paris by the French Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture (the only other designer to be so honored was Mainbocher
Mainbocher
Mainbocher is a fashion label founded by the American couturier Main Rousseau Bocher , also known as Mainbocher. Established in 1929, the house of Mainbocher successfully operated in Paris and then in New York...
), and he showed his haute couture
Haute couture
Haute couture refers to the creation of exclusive custom-fitted clothing. Haute couture is made to order for a specific customer, and it is usually made from high-quality, expensive fabric and sewn with extreme attention to detail and finished by the most experienced and capable seamstresses,...
collections in Paris for the next three seasons. He has twice been nominated for the Council of Fashion Designers of America
Council of Fashion Designers of America
The Council of Fashion Designers of America, Inc. is a not-for-profit trade association of over 350 of America’s foremost fashion and accessory designers. As of 2009, Diane von Fürstenberg is the group's President and Steven Kolb is the Executive Director...
's Womenswear Designer of the Year Award. Rucci is also a painter, who has exhibited in art galleries throughout the U.S.
From the beginning of his career, Rucci was inspired by the style of such fashion icons as Elsa Peretti
Elsa Peretti
-Biography:She was born in Florence, Italy, in 1940, the daughter of a well-to-do Roman family. Educated at Volbicela School in Rome, with a diploma in interior design. In early jobs she was a French teacher, a ski instructor and a model...
(for her "biomorphic nature") and Pauline de Rothschild
Pauline de Rothschild
Pauline de Rothschild was a writer, a fashion designer, and, with her second husband, a translator of both Elizabethan poetry and the plays of Christopher Fry...
(for "creating harmony out of disorder"). Rucci's influences also include the painters Cy Twombly
Cy Twombly
Edwin Parker "Cy" Twombly, Jr. was an American artist well known for his large-scale, freely scribbled, calligraphic-style graffiti paintings, on solid fields of mostly gray, tan, or off-white colors...
, Franz Kline
Franz Kline
Franz Jozef Kline was an American painter mainly associated with the Abstract Expressionist movement centered around New York in the 1940s and 1950s. He was born in Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, and attended Girard College, an academy in Philadelphia for fatherless boys...
, Antoni Tàpies
Antoni Tàpies
Antoni Tàpies i Puig, 1st Marquess of Tàpies is a Catalan painter. He is one of the most famous European artists of his generation. After studying law for 3 years, he devoted himself from 1943 onwards only to his painting...
and Francis Bacon
Francis Bacon
Francis Bacon, 1st Viscount St Albans, KC was an English philosopher, statesman, scientist, lawyer, jurist, author and pioneer of the scientific method. He served both as Attorney General and Lord Chancellor of England...
, sculptor Louise Nevelson, Japanese symbolism, and the designer James Galanos
James Galanos
James Galanos is an American fashion designer, widely considered to be one the world's foremost 20th century couturiers.-Early life:James Galanos was born September 20, 1924 in a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the only son of Greek-born parents...
. Rucci's "individual mind" has been praised, as well as his "distinct point of view," as The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
noted in a review on a 2007 Rucci exhibition at the Fashion Institute of Technology
Fashion Institute of Technology
The Fashion Institute of Technology, generally known as FIT, is a State University of New York college of art, business, design, and technology connected to the fashion industry, with an urban campus located on West 27th Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in the Chelsea neighborhood of...
.
In 2007, fashion historian Valerie Steele
Valerie Steele
Valerie Fahnestock Steele is a fashion historian, curator, and director of the Museum at the Fashion Institute of Technology, New York...
wrote The Art of Weightlessness, an illustrated monograph published by the Yale University Press
Yale University Press
Yale University Press is a book publisher founded in 1908 by George Parmly Day. It became an official department of Yale University in 1961, but remains financially and operationally autonomous....
on the occasion of Rucci's exhibition at the FIT
Fashion Institute of Technology
The Fashion Institute of Technology, generally known as FIT, is a State University of New York college of art, business, design, and technology connected to the fashion industry, with an urban campus located on West 27th Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in the Chelsea neighborhood of...
Museum. In 2008, the documentary Ralph Rucci: A Designer and His House, narrated by Martha Stewart
Martha Stewart
Martha Stewart is an American business magnate, author, magazine publisher, and television personality. As founder of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, she has gained success through a variety of business ventures, encompassing publishing, broadcasting, and merchandising...
, premiered on the Sundance Channel.
Chado Ralph Rucci
Rucci launched the Chado Ralph Rucci line in 1994, "chado" coming from the Japanese tea ceremony noted for its attention to detail, exactitude, sense of austere style, and expertise on the part of the practitioner.According to Cathy Horyn
Cathy Horyn
Cathy Horyn is an American fashion journalist, working as the fashion critic for The New York Times where she also keeps a highly noted and provocative blog called...
of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
, "Mr. Rucci’s clothes have a devotion to elegance that can feel as pitiless as a sermon on a hot summer day," while Robin Givhan
Robin Givhan
Robin Givhan is the former fashion editor for The Washington Post. She left The Washington Post in 2010 and is now the fashion critic and fashion correspondent for The Daily Beast and Newsweek. She won the 2006 Pulitzer Prize for criticism, the first such time for a fashion writer...
of The Washington Post
The Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
wrote that "Rucci's clothes are aspirational in every sense of the word. They ooze luxury from 100 paces, yet they are not ostentatious. They look expensive because every seam is perfect, every button exactly placed, every skirt has just the right lift. No dress of his would dare wrinkle."
Rucci's gowns are included in the permanent collections of the Victoria and Albert Museum
Victoria and Albert Museum
The Victoria and Albert Museum , set in the Brompton district of The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, London, England, is the world's largest museum of decorative arts and design, housing a permanent collection of over 4.5 million objects...
in London, the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of Art
Metropolitan Museum of Art
The Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...
in New York, DeYoung Museum in San Francisco, The Philadelphia Museum of Art, Phoenix Art Museum
Phoenix art museum
The Phoenix Art Museum is the Southwest United States' largest art museum for visual art. Located in Phoenix, Arizona, the museum is . It displays international exhibitions alongside its comprehensive collection of more than 18,000 works of American, Asian, European, Latin American, Western...
in Phoenix, and Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary Art, among others.
Museum exhibitions
- 2003: Rucci's gown was included in "Goddess" exhibition at the Costume Institute of the Metropolitan Museum of ArtMetropolitan Museum of ArtThe Metropolitan Museum of Art is a renowned art museum in New York City. Its permanent collection contains more than two million works, divided into nineteen curatorial departments. The main building, located on the eastern edge of Central Park along Manhattan's Museum Mile, is one of the...
in New York, N.Y. - 2004: Rucci's gown was included in "Goddess" exhibition at the Mode Museum in Antwerp, Belgium
- 2005: Rucci's designs were included in “Cut and Construction: The Foundations of Fashion” exhibition at the Pratt InstitutePratt InstitutePratt Institute is a private art college in New York City located in Brooklyn, New York, with satellite campuses in Manhattan and Utica. Pratt is one of the leading undergraduate art schools in the United States and offers programs in Architecture, Graphic Design, History of Art and Design,...
in New York, N.Y. - 2005: Chado Ralph Rucci was the subject of a retrospective exhibition at the Costume Institute of the Kent State UniversityKent State UniversityKent State University is a public research university located in Kent, Ohio, United States. The university has eight campuses around the northeast Ohio region with the main campus in Kent being the largest...
Museum in Kent, Ohio. - 2005: a Chado Ralph Rucci garment was included in the "She's Like a Rainbow: Colors in Fashion" exhibition at the Museum at the Fashion Institute of TechnologyFashion Institute of TechnologyThe Fashion Institute of Technology, generally known as FIT, is a State University of New York college of art, business, design, and technology connected to the fashion industry, with an urban campus located on West 27th Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in the Chelsea neighborhood of...
in New York, N.Y. - 2006: Rucci's designs were exhibited at a group show entitled "Breaking the Mode" at the Los Angeles County Museum of ArtLos Angeles County Museum of ArtThe Los Angeles County Museum of Art is an art museum in Los Angeles, California. It is located on Wilshire Boulevard along Museum Row in the Miracle Mile vicinity of Los Angeles, adjacent to the George C. Page Museum and La Brea Tar Pits....
, in Los Angeles, California. - 2006: a Rucci gown was included in the "Glamour: Fashion, Film, Fantasy" exhibition at the Museum at the Fashion Institute of TechnologyFashion Institute of TechnologyThe Fashion Institute of Technology, generally known as FIT, is a State University of New York college of art, business, design, and technology connected to the fashion industry, with an urban campus located on West 27th Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in the Chelsea neighborhood of...
in New York, N.Y. - 2006: Rucci's designs were included in the "Skin + Bones: Parallel Practices in Fashion and Architecture" exhibition at the Los Angeles Museum of Contemporary ArtMuseum of Contemporary Art, Los AngelesThe Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles is a contemporary art museum with three locations in greater Los Angeles, California. The main branch is located on Grand Avenue in Downtown Los Angeles, near Walt Disney Concert Hall...
in Los Angeles, California - 2007: a solo installation entitled "Ralph Rucci: The Art of Weightlessness" was mounted at the Museum at the Fashion Institute of TechnologyFashion Institute of TechnologyThe Fashion Institute of Technology, generally known as FIT, is a State University of New York college of art, business, design, and technology connected to the fashion industry, with an urban campus located on West 27th Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in the Chelsea neighborhood of...
in New York, N.Y. - 2008: a retrospective solo exhibition opened at the Phoenix Art MuseumPhoenix art museumThe Phoenix Art Museum is the Southwest United States' largest art museum for visual art. Located in Phoenix, Arizona, the museum is . It displays international exhibitions alongside its comprehensive collection of more than 18,000 works of American, Asian, European, Latin American, Western...
in Phoenix, Arizona. - 2008: Rucci's gowns went on exhibit entitled "A Passion for Perfection: James GalanosJames GalanosJames Galanos is an American fashion designer, widely considered to be one the world's foremost 20th century couturiers.-Early life:James Galanos was born September 20, 1924 in a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the only son of Greek-born parents...
, Gustave TassellGustave TassellGustave Tassell was an American fashion designer, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.Tassell studied painting at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. Moving to New York City, he worked in the advertising and display department for Hattie Carnegie, who was well known in the fashion design world...
, Ralph Rucci" at the Philadelphia Museum of ArtPhiladelphia Museum of ArtThe Philadelphia Museum of Art is among the largest art museums in the United States. It is located at the west end of the Benjamin Franklin Parkway in Philadelphia's Fairmount Park. The Museum was established in 1876 in conjunction with the Centennial Exposition of the same year...
in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. - 2009: Rucci's designs were included in the group show "American Beauty: Aesthetics and Innovation in Fashion" at the Museum at the Fashion Institute of TechnologyFashion Institute of TechnologyThe Fashion Institute of Technology, generally known as FIT, is a State University of New York college of art, business, design, and technology connected to the fashion industry, with an urban campus located on West 27th Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in the Chelsea neighborhood of...
in New York, N.Y. - 2010: a collection of Rucci's haute coutureHaute coutureHaute couture refers to the creation of exclusive custom-fitted clothing. Haute couture is made to order for a specific customer, and it is usually made from high-quality, expensive fabric and sewn with extreme attention to detail and finished by the most experienced and capable seamstresses,...
gowns went on exhibit entitled "Extending the Runway: Tatiana SorokkoTatiana SorokkoTatiana Sorokko is a Russian-born American model, fashion journalist and haute couture collector. She walked the runways for the world's most prominent designers and fashion houses, appeared on covers of leading fashion magazines, and became the first Russian model of the post-Soviet period to gain...
Style", at the Moscow Fashion Museum in MoscowMoscowMoscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
, RussiaRussiaRussia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. - 2010: a HalstonHalstonRoy Halston Frowick, also known as Halston was a clothing designer of the 1970s. His long dresses or copies of his style were popular fashion wear in mid-1970s discotheques.-Early life and career:...
gown, designed by Rucci when he worked for the House of Halston in the late 1970s, was attributed to Ralph Rucci and included in the "American High Style: Fashioning a National Collection" exhibition at the Brooklyn MuseumBrooklyn MuseumThe Brooklyn Museum is an encyclopedia art museum located in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. At 560,000 square feet, the museum holds New York City's second largest art collection with roughly 1.5 million works....
in Brooklyn, N.Y.
Awards and honors
- 2006: the Artistry of Fashion Award from The Couture Council of The Museum at FITFashion Institute of TechnologyThe Fashion Institute of Technology, generally known as FIT, is a State University of New York college of art, business, design, and technology connected to the fashion industry, with an urban campus located on West 27th Street between Seventh and Eighth Avenues in the Chelsea neighborhood of...
- 2008: the Fashion Design Award of the National Design Awards Program of the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum.
- 2008: a Doctor of PhilosophyDoctor of PhilosophyDoctor of Philosophy, abbreviated as Ph.D., PhD, D.Phil., or DPhil , in English-speaking countries, is a postgraduate academic degree awarded by universities...
degree honoris causa from the San Francisco Academy of Art UniversityAcademy of Art UniversityThe Academy of Art University , a for-profit university owned by the Stephens Institute, was founded in San Francisco, California in 1929 by Richard S. Stephens...
, - 2009: the Pratt InstitutePratt InstitutePratt Institute is a private art college in New York City located in Brooklyn, New York, with satellite campuses in Manhattan and Utica. Pratt is one of the leading undergraduate art schools in the United States and offers programs in Architecture, Graphic Design, History of Art and Design,...
Icon Award. - 2011: the first Visionary Award for Fashion from the Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts
External links
- Official website
- Ralph Rucci at artnet.com
- http://video.nytimes.com/video/2008/09/09/fashion/shows/1194817107178/ralph-rucci.htmlRalph Rucci at The New York TimesThe New York TimesThe New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
video] - Chado Ralph Rucci at World News