Why Rick Owens Still Matters in Fashion

Trends in fashion have a short shelf life. Something is everywhere in March and a bit embarrassing by June. Which is why I find it kind of wild that a designer who works almost entirely in black, grey and dusty off-whites is still the name people whisper about at every Paris Fashion Week.

From Porterville to Paris

He was born in 1961 in Porterville, a small California town, which is not where you'd expect "lord of darkness" to come from. Before any of the fame he was working in the Los Angeles garment trade, cutting and making clothes the boring way. Then a boyfriend introduced him to Michèle Lamy. She ran her own sportswear label and knew everybody in the city's scene. She hired him as a patternmaker, and from there the two of them became partners, in work and in life.

The moment people point to is the Vogue Paris shoot where Kate Moss wore one of his leather jackets. After that picture, buyers wanted to know who made it.

In the early 2000s he and Lamy packed up and moved to Paris. They started their own company in 2004, married in 2006, and have shown their collections in Paris ever since. Owens has said Lamy is more his "mate" than his muse, and honestly that fits. She's a designer, a performer, a former restaurant owner and an unmistakable face at any show. A lot of the brand's personality comes from her.

What the clothes actually feel like

Plenty of designers have tried dark and moody. Most of it looks like a Halloween costume. Owens' clothes have weight. The draping hangs properly, the leather looks like it's already been worn for ten years, and the shoulders are long and the cuts lean. From across the street it looks intimidating, but put it on and it's surprisingly easy to live in. That contrast is what hooks people.

He also looks backward more than you'd think. A 2019 collection was dedicated to Larry LeGaspi, the designer he calls a creative forefather, and his Fall/Winter 2024 show went back to Porterville for inspiration.

The shoes, obviously

Ask anyone why Rick Owens got so big and the shoes come up first. The Geobasket is the famous one: a tall, sculpted high-top made in Italy from calf leather and suede, and it's carried that name since 2008. You can spot it from half a block away.

The Ramones are the calmer option. They borrow the shape of the old Converse Chuck Taylor but add a thick rubber toe cap and a chunky sole, so they feel familiar and strange at once. If you're shopping, our Rick Owens Scarpe page is the place to compare the two styles.

DRKSHDW and everyday wear

In 2005 he started DRKSHDW, the more casual line. Hoodies, denim, sneakers, the stuff you can wear without Rick Owens hoodieplanning your whole day around it. If you're new to the brand, I'd start here. One good with a loose fit and heavy fabric changes an outfit more than you'd expect, and a plain Rick Owens shirt works under a coat or alone with black jeans.

It's bigger than clothes

He designs furniture too, and Lamy helps produce it. There have been collaborations with Moncler and Champion, among others, and in 2019 the CFDA named him Menswear Designer of the Year. People don't buy a Rick Owens hoodie only because it's a hoodie. They're buying into a whole world with its own rules.

So why does it still matter?

Mostly because he stayed himself. Twenty-plus years in, you can still spot a Rick Owens piece from far away, and very few labels can say that. He also never pretended the clothes were for everyone, and that's exactly what makes people want them. And he took a look that used to live on runways and in museums and put it onto shoes, hoodies and shirts that people wear to the shops.

Silhouettes will keep swinging between baggy and slim, as they always do. A designer who made black into its own language isn't going anywhere.

Want to start your own collection? Have a look at our Rick Owens Scarpe, Hoodies and Shirts at Rick Owen Italy.

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