Central Saint Martins Famous Fashion Alumni
Successful Fashion Graduates Of The Prestigious School
Aug 21, 2009
The Central School of Art and Design was first established in 1896 and became the Central Saint Martins School it is known as today in 1989, after the merging of the Central School of Arts and Crafts and St Martins School of Art.
The college teaches all aspects of the creative arts, from acting to architecture, printing to fashion design. Central Saint Martins is part of the University of the Arts, which consists of six creative London colleges. The Central Saint Martins campus is currently in three buildings around London but is moving to a new huge new home in King's Cross in 2011, which will combine all the campuses together.
The Fashion Alumni
As one of the fashion capitals, it’s no surprise that London’s fashion colleges nurture and teach some of the world’s greatest designers. Central Saint Martins is famed for its ability to produce the next big name in fashion. In terms of reputation and the success of its past students, Central Saint Martins is in a league of its own. Here are some of its most iconic fashion alumni:
- Katharine Hamnett – graduated from CSM (Central Saint Martins) in 1969 and is famed for her political designs. Her slogan t-shirts are iconic to this day.
- John Galliano – graduated from CSM in 1984. He is now one of the most powerful players in the fashion industry. In 1996 he became head designer at Christian Dior, where he remains. He also designs his own label.
- Alexander McQueen – graduated from CSM in 1992. From 1996 - 2001 he was head designer at Givenchy, succeeding John Galliano. He now focuses on his own label, where his avant-garde approach to design is still enthusiastically received.
- Giles Deacon – graduated from CSM in 1992. He worked for Jean-Charles de Castelbajac, Bottega Veneta and Gucci before setting up his own successful label in 2004.
- Hussein Chalayan – graduated from CSM in 1993. He is now Creative Director of Puma, has his own label and is famed for his technical and conceptual approach to fashion design.
- Matthew Williamson – graduated from CSM in 1994. He was head designer at Pucci from 2006 - 2008. He now designs his own collection and a diffusion range, ‘Butterfly’ for British high street store Debenhams.
- Luella Bartley – in 1994 she graduated from a course in fashion journalism at CSM and worked as a journalist for British Vogue magazine before turning her hand to design and launching her own fashion label in 1999.
- Stella McCartney – graduated from CSM in 1995, after getting supermodels Kate Moss and Naomi Campbell to model in her graduate collection. From 1997, she was head designer at Chloé before launching her own label in 2001. Since 2004, she has also designed a sportswear collection for Adidas.
- Phoebe Philo - graduated from CSM in 1996 and went with Stella McCartney to Chloé to work as her assistant. She succeeded McCartney to be head designer in 2001, where she remained until 2006. In 2008 she became creative director of the fashion house Celine.
- Gareth Pugh – graduated from CSM in 2003. His gothic, structured designs have drawn comparisons with McQueen and he has been embraced by the fashion community and celebrities alike. For A/W '09 he showcased his menswear debut collection.
- Christopher Kane – graduated from CSM in 2006 and started his own label the same year. The Scottish designer also produces capsule collections for British high street store Topshop.
This impressive list of alumni talent spans from the 1960's to the present decade, showing that Central Saint Martins skill of producing some of the fashion world's most talented designers shows no sign of abating any time soon. Of the eleven designers listed above, eight of them have been recipients of the prestigious British Designer of the year Award, given out by the British Fashion Council.
At the end of every academic year, the Central Saint Martin's graduate show is closely watched by the fashion press, all eager to spot the 'next big thing' and continue the college's success in injecting fresh blood into the fashion industry.
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