Oscar de la Renta

Oscar de la Renta was born in the Dominican Republic in 1932. In 1950, he traveled to Spain to study art at Madrid's Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando, and was briefly an illustrator for Balenciaga's couture house, Eisa. Later, he moved to Paris and began designing for Antonio Castillo at Lanvin. De la Renta has acknowledged the enormous influence of his years in Spain, where he met aristocratic clients at Balenciaga and mingled with gypsies, flamenco dancers, bullfighters, and Goya. He said, "What I saw in Spain colored the way I have looked at clothes ever since."

After moving to New York City in 1963, he designed for Elizabeth Arden until he launched his own label in 1965. Fusing sculptural shapes and romantic evening wear, de la Renta rapidly forged his trademark aesthetic, which was known for its luxurious, dramatic, and feminine sensibility. When he was appointed as designer to the French couture house of Pierre Balmain in 1993, it was the first time that an American had been chosen for such a prestigious position at the heart of the haute couture. (Oscar left Balmain in 2002.)

De la Renta won numerous awards and dressed some of the world's most sophisticated and socially well-connected women. Nancy Kissinger stated, "I first wore Oscar in the late 1960s. I love all his clothes, because of his sense of color - there's something very staggering about the combinations he chooses. And he has an amazing sense of what is appropriate for an occasion, formal and informal. It seems to me he's in a category by himself."

Today, the company also produces a bridal collection, a fragrance line, a home collection, and a complete range of accessories, including handbags, shoes and jewelry. In 2008, Oscar de la Renta opened its first international stores in Athens and Madrid, and continued its expansion with the opening of Dubai in 2009. In October 2014 designer Peter Copping was hand-picked by de la Renta himself to take over as creative director of the company.