Thierry Mugler

Early life and education

Mugler was born in Strasbourg, France. His passion led him to focus more on drawing than on school, and at the age of 9, he began to study classical dance. By 14, he joined the ballet corps for the Rhin Opera (Opéra national du Rhin).

At the same time, Mugler began formal interior design training at the Strasbourg School of Decorative Arts.

Career

At the age of 24, Mugler moved to Paris, France. He began designing clothes for Parisian boutique, Gudule. At 26, Mugler, who was working as a freelance designer, began to design for a variety of large ready-to-wear fashion houses in Paris, Milan, London and Barcelona.

In 1973, Mugler created his first personal collection called "Café de Paris". The style of the collection was both sophisticated and urban. Melka Tréanton, a powerful fashion editor, helped to launch his career. In 1976, she asked him to show his work in Tokyo for an event organized by Shiseido. In 1978, he opened his first Paris boutique at the Place des Victoires in the 1er Arrondissement). At the same time, Thierry Mugler launched a fashion collection for men. For this collection, he reworked classical masculinity, giving it a definitively modern style. A clean, precise, structured cut which outlined a highly recognizable silhouette: prominent shoulders, both "anatomical and classic", for a dynamically slender look.

During the 1980s and 1990s, Thierry Mugler became an internationally recognized designer, and his collections garnered much commercial success. At the request of the Chambre Syndicale de la haute couture, he completed his first haute couture collection in 1992.

He created the famous black dress worn by Demi Moore in the 1993 movie, Indecent Proposal.

His clothes are identified by their style and their structure. Mugler, over the next two decades created a style that was very much of its time: it was strong, angular, and sometimes almost cruel. Shoulders were wide and padded; waists were wasp like. Prints were banished: Mugler”s clothes came in solid, dominating colors. Collars had exaggerated points, or flame like cutouts. The insect kingdom was a constant influence, as were the ladies and gentlemen of film noir. PVC was often used as his material for his runway pieces, used to create space and robot themes.

Mugler published his first photography book in 1988, Thierry Mugler, Photographe. This was followed by a monograph in 1999 entitled, Fashion Fetish Fantasy which assembles photos of his creations.

Mugler also directs short films, advertising films and video clips. He regularly designs costumes for musical comedies, concerts, operas and the theatre (including Macbeth for the Comédie Française). He has worked with Robert Altman and George Michael (he directed the video for Michael's "Too Funky" in 1992). He also directed the first advertising film for one of his fragrances, Alien.

In 2002 Mugler collaborated with the Cirque du Soleil. He directed "Extravaganza", one of the scenes of Zumanity, and also created all of the costumes and the identity of the characters in the show.

In 2009, Mugler worked as artistic advisor to singer Beyoncé. He created the costumes for her "I Am... World Tour".

In 2016, Mugler created and directed the music video and staging for San Marino's Eurovision Song Contest entry I Didn't Know performed by Turkish singer Serhat.

In 2008 the Mugler's brand launched Thierry Mugler Beauty, a high-end line of cosmetics.

In September 2010 Nicola Formichetti was announced to be the Creative Director of the Thierry Mugler brand. He changed the brand name to MUGLER, removing the first name, and in January 2011 he launched the revival of the brand's menswear collection in collaboration with Romain Kremer.

An April 2010 New York Times story discussed Mugler's cosmetic transformation of his face body and genitals. "[Mugler has] taken to calling himself Manfred and transformed his body...into what is apparently a 240-pound spectacle of muscle and nipple and tattoo..."

With over two years of being the creative director of MUGLER, Formichetti announced in April 2013 that he and the fashion house will be parting ways. Formichetti left MUGLER in to work for the Italian brand Diesel.

In December 2013, House of Mugler announced David Koma as the artistic director.

Fragrances

Mugler’s first perfume appeared in 1992 and was called Angel. "Angel" contains a combination of praline and chocolate mixed with a strong accord of patchouli. It would be a part of a new fragrance type called gourmand. The Angel bottle, a design in the shape of a faceted star, was created by the Brosse Master Glassmakers. Fans of the fragrance include Diana Ross, Barbara Walters, Eva Mendes, and Hillary Clinton.

In 1996 Mugler followed up Angel with a male version named Angel Men or A*Men. This fragrance includes notes of caramel, coffee, vanilla, patchouli, and honey.

In 2005, Alien was created, the second major Thierry Mugler fragrance. Also in 2005, Thierry Mugler launched the Thierry Mugler Perfume Workshops", which are open to the general public and led by specialists of the perfumery and oenology world.

Angel and Alien together produce about $280 million in sales annually.

In 2010, the fragrance Womanity was released by the house of Mugler.

Mugler's newest fragrance, Angel Muse, was released in 2015.

In 2006, Thierry Mugler completed a project for the launch of Tom Tykwer's film "Perfume". In collaboration with the IFF company, Thierry Mugler created a box set of fifteen compositions.

During 2007, still following the metamorphosis theme, Mugler launched Mirror, Mirror, a collection of five fragrances, created as "perfume-trickery" to "enhance one’s presence".

Personal life

Mugler is openly gay, and is a longtime bodybuilder.