Hubert de Givenchy, a pioneering French fashion designer who founded The House of Givenchy in 1952, has died at the age of 91-years-old. He was born on February 21, 1927, in Beauvais, France. He would go on to attend the Ecole des Beaux Arts in Paris and get his first job in fashion in 1945, working under Jacques Fath in Paris.
He opened his own fashion house in 1952 and the rest is history. From Audrey Hepburn to Jackie Kennedy Onnasis, Givenchy dressed some of the most famous people in history.
He was famous for having designed much of the personal and professional wardrobe of Audrey Hepburn. De Givenchy designed Hepburn’s famous little black dress in “Breakfast at Tiffany’s.”
Clare Waight Keller, the artistic director of Givenchy, said on Instagram that she is “deeply saddened by the loss of a great man and artist I have had the honor to meet.”
via Instagram:
“I am deeply saddened by the loss of a great man and artist I have had the honor to meet and get to know since my appointment at Givenchy. Not only was he one of the most influential fashion figures of our time, whose legacy still influences modern day dressing, but he also was one of the chicest most charming men I have ever met. The definition of a true gentleman, that will stay with me forever. My deepest thoughts are with his loved ones in this difficult time.”
De Givenchy retired from fashion design in 1995.
Update 10:56 AM
According to French website The Local, Givenchy passed away peacefully in his sleep. His partner Phillipe Venet announced his death, they lived in a Rennaisance chateau near Paris.
