Mary McFadden

 

Mary McFadden was born in New York City in 1938 and spent her childhood on a cotton plantation outside of Memphis, Tennessee. She went to Paris to study at the École Lubec from 1955 to 1956 and the Sorbonne from 1956 to 1957 before returning to New York in 1956 to study fashion at the Traphagen School of Design. From 1958 to 1960, McFadden studied sociology at Columbia University and the New School for Social Research.

Dior Public Relations

McFadden began working as the director of public relations for Dior New York in 1962 and remained there until 1965, when she married Philip Hariri. Because he was a diamond merchant, the marriage required McFadden to relocate to South Africa, where he worked as a journalist for Vogue South Africa and the Rand Daily Mail.

Special Projects for Vogue

McFadden became an influential figure as special projects editor for American Vogue in 1970, thanks to her unique and idiosyncratic style and love of handcrafts. She began by designing clothes for herself, which she had made to her own specifications from fabrics she had discovered during her extensive travels, resulting in an eclectic look that mixed designer pieces with "ethnic" garments. Geraldine Stutz, president of Henri Bendel, purchased McFadden's tunic ensembles when Vogue featured them, simple shapes showing her characteristic love of color and print. Designers could launch their careers at the time by creating a small collection and selling it to a single store, and McFadden's initial success prompted her to launch her own designing and manufacturing company in 1973. In 1976, she founded Mary McFadden Inc. and began designing evening gowns in pleated silk using a unique "Marii" technique reminiscent of Mariano Fortuny's, which she patented in 1975. She combined this creativity with elements of hand-painting, quilting, beading, and embroidery, drawing ideas and inspiration from ancient and ethnic cultures around the world. The clothing was handcrafted, with passementerie and beaten brass fastenings. These dresses were ideal for her wealthy, well-traveled customers because they were made with satin-backed polyester and did not crease. Her less expensive clothes, designed in the late 1970s, were notable for their use of embellishment and combination of luxurious fabrics. She later marketed her designs on the shopping channel QVC, where she had particular success with accessories. She was in charge of a large number of licenses for her designs in womenswear, sleepwear, footwear, eyewear, neckwear, and home furnishings.

Awards and Achievements

McFadden received two Coty Awards and was inducted into the Coty Hall of Fame in 1979. Fashion Week of the Americas honored her with a Lifetime Achievement Award in 2002. She was the first non-Hispanic woman to receive this honor.

Mary McFadden's clothing has always been designed to be trend-resistant. Her work focuses on an eclectic appropriation of the past and decorative elements from other cultures, which she transforms into "wearable art."