Jean Paul Gaultier

Jean Paul Gaultier started his career with Pierre Cardin in 1970 on his 18th birthday. After working at Esterel, Patou, and again at Cardin, Gaultier decided to start his own fashion house. Staging his first show in Paris in 1976, critical and commercial success followed quickly and by the early ‘80s he was one of the most talked about young designers. From the beginning of his career, Jean Paul Gaultier wanted to show that beauty has many facets and that we can find it where we least expect it. For example, he used a lowly tin can, first as a bracelet and later as packaging for his hugely successful perfume. His menswear line was launched in 1984 with the “Male Object” collection. In 1997, Gaultier realized his dream of starting an haute couture collection with “Gaultier Paris.” He also designed for Hermès womenswear from 2004 to 2011. In 2014, Gaultier announced he would end his ready-to-wear clothing line to focus on developing couture collections.

Throughout his career Gaultier has worked in dance, music, and film. His costumes for Madonna’s “Blond Ambition” tour have left an indelible imprint on popular culture. Gaultier’s first venture into cinema was with the 1989 film The Cook, The Thief, His Wife and Her Lover. He also designed costumes for The City of Lost Children and The Fifth Element, and has worked with director Pedro Almodóvar on three films: Kika, Bad Education, and The Skin I Live In.

Gaultier has taken a strong public stand in the fight against HIV/ AIDS and is a longtime supporter of amfAR. His tremendous creative and philanthropic resources have helped raise AIDS awareness and funds for amfAR’s lifesaving research programs. In 1992, he raised more than $700,000 for the Foundation with the Jean Paul Gaultier Los Angeles charity fashion show, chaired by Madonna and Herb Ritts. Most recently, in 2014, Gaultier teamed up with amfAR to produce a special edition summer tote.