Oscar de la Renta facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Oscar de la Renta
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De la Renta in 2008
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| Born |
Óscar Arístides Renta Fiallo
22 July 1932 Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic
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| Died | 20 October 2014 (aged 82) Kent, Connecticut, U.S.
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| Citizenship | American Dominican Republic |
| Education | Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando |
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Label(s)
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| Spouse(s) |
Françoise de Langlade
(m. 1967; died 1983)Annette Engelhard
(m. 1989) |
| Children | Moisés de la Renta |
| Relatives | Luis Álvarez Renta (nephew) Fabio Fiallo (uncle) Luis Arístides Fiallo (uncle) Viriato Fiallo (cousin) Larimar Fiallo (first cousin-twice removed) José Ortíz de la Renta (great-great-grandfather) |
| Awards | CFDA Lifetime Achievement Award,
American Fashion Critic's Award, Order of Juan Pablo Duarte, Order of Cristóbal Colón |
Óscar Arístides Renta Fiallo (born July 22, 1932 – died October 20, 2014) was a famous fashion designer. He was known around the world as Oscar de la Renta. He was born in the Dominican Republic and later became an American citizen.
Oscar de la Renta learned from top designers like Cristóbal Balenciaga. In the 1960s, he became very well-known. He dressed important people, including Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis, the wife of President John F. Kennedy. He also worked for famous fashion houses like Lanvin and Balmain. His own fashion brand has stores in many cities, like London and New York.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Oscar de la Renta was the youngest of seven children. He was the only boy in his family. He was born in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. His mother was from the Dominican Republic, and his father was from Puerto Rico. His father owned an insurance company.
Oscar grew up in a family that valued education. His mother's family included poets, scholars, and business people. His uncle, Luis Arístides Fiallo Cabral, was a doctor, lawyer, and architect. Another uncle, Fabio Fiallo, was a diplomat and poet.
When Oscar was 18, he moved to Spain to study painting. He attended the Royal Academy of San Fernando in Madrid. To earn money, he drew clothes for newspapers. One day, the wife of the U.S. Ambassador to Spain saw his drawings. She asked him to design a dress for her daughter. This dress was featured on the cover of Life magazine.
This event made Oscar interested in fashion design. He started sketching for Spanish fashion houses. Soon, he began working with Cristóbal Balenciaga, a very famous Spanish designer. Oscar considered Balenciaga his teacher. In 1961, Oscar moved to Paris to work at Lanvin.
A Career in Fashion
In 1963, Oscar de la Renta sought advice from Diana Vreeland. She was the editor-in-chief of Vogue magazine. He told her he wanted to design "ready-to-wear" clothes. These are clothes sold in stores, not custom-made. Vreeland suggested he work for Elizabeth Arden. She told him he would become famous faster there.
Oscar worked for Elizabeth Arden in New York City for two years. After that, he joined an American fashion house called Jane Derby. When Jane Derby passed away in 1965, Oscar de la Renta took over the company.
From 1993 to 2002, Oscar de la Renta also designed special high-fashion collections for Balmain. This made him the first designer from the Dominican Republic to lead a French fashion house. In 2006, his company started designing wedding dresses too.
Many famous women and celebrities have worn Oscar de la Renta's designs. His brand grew a lot around the world starting in 2003. You can find his ready-to-wear clothes in his own stores, online, and in other shops worldwide.
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A 1966 beaded lace cocktail dress.
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A 1977 embroidered evening outfit.
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A red brocade pantsuit from the late 1990s.
In 2014, the George W. Bush Presidential Center held an exhibit. It was called "Oscar de la Renta: Five Decades of Style." It showed the clothes he designed for Mrs. Bush and other First Ladies of America.
Other Businesses
In 1977, Oscar de la Renta launched his own perfume, called OSCAR. Later, he added a line of accessories in 2001. In 2002, he started a home furnishings line. This included dining tables, chairs, and couches. In 2004, he created a more affordable clothing line called O Oscar. He wanted to reach new customers with these items.
In 2006, Oscar de la Renta designed a boutique hotel. It is called Tortuga Bay and is located at the Puntacana Resort and Club in the Dominican Republic.
Awards and Helping Others
Design Awards and Honors
Oscar de la Renta won many awards for his designs. He won the Coty Award in 1967 and 1968. This award was like the "Oscars" for the U.S. fashion industry. In 1973, he was added to the Coty Hall of Fame.
He also served as President of the CFDA several times. He won the American Fashion Critic's Award twice. The CFDA gave him a Lifetime Achievement Award in 1990.
King Juan Carlos of Spain gave him two awards. The French government also honored him with the Légion d'honneur.
Helping Others
Oscar de la Renta was very involved in helping his home country, the Dominican Republic. He founded the Casa del Niño orphanage in La Romana. He also helped build a school near his home in Punta Cana.
He held dual citizenship in the Dominican Republic and the United States. He was also an Ambassador-at-Large for the Dominican Republic. This meant he represented his country around the world.
Oscar de la Renta was a board member for many important organizations. These included the Metropolitan Opera and Carnegie Hall. He also supported many charities, like New Yorkers for Children. In 2014, he recreated his Spring fashion show. This was to raise money for cancer research at the University of Miami.
Other Honors
In 1991, he received the Golden Plate Award. In 2014, he was given the Carnegie Hall Medal of Excellence. In 2017, the United States Postal Service honored him. They released a series of eleven stamps featuring his designs.
Personal Life
In 1966, Oscar de la Renta married Françoise de Langlade. She was an editor for French Vogue. They were married until she passed away in 1983. After her death, Oscar adopted a boy from the Dominican Republic. He named him Moisés.
In 1990, Oscar married Annette Engelhard. He had stepchildren from both of his marriages. His son-in-law, Alex Bolen, is now the CEO of Oscar de la Renta, LLC. His stepdaughter, Eliza Bolen, works there too.
Oscar de la Renta was seen as a special ambassador for the Dominican Republic. He had homes there and in Kent, Connecticut, in the U.S.
Later Life and Passing
Oscar de la Renta faced health challenges starting in 2006. He passed away on October 20, 2014, at his home in Kent, Connecticut. He was 82 years old.
See also
In Spanish: Óscar de la Renta para niños
- List of people from the Dominican Republic
- List of fashion designers
