Your favourite designer’s favourite designer, Haider Ackermann has spent the last 20 years doing exactly as he wishes. A blessing, not a curse, this integrity has cemented his name into fashion’s hall of fame, with his impressive oeuvre spanning everything from flesh-flashing satins to exquisite tailoring. Along the way, he’s helmed Berluti, styled and hung out with Hollywood heroes Tilda Swinton and Timothée Chalamet, and broken the internet on numerous occasions.
It’s been a ride, but never has the Colombian-French maverick said ‘yes’ to anything he wasn’t sure on. The creative directorship of Maison Margiela? No thanks. Haider didn’t feel he could replace his idol, Martin. Succeeding Karl at Chanel? He didn’t say no as such, but his humble response to the Kaiser’s proposition was a little slow off the mark.
But that’s Haider for you, a bespectacled mastermind that marches to the beat of his own drum, ditching trends in an industry defined by them. Throughout his work, sensuality, déshabille and exacting cuts have remained the maestro’s perennial codes, regardless of the industry’s changing winds. Even as a student, he stuck by his guns, eventually resulting in his expulsion from Antwerp’s Royal Academy of Fine Arts after persistently late homework he didn’t have his heart in. Fortunately, a spot interning alongside John Galliano set him back on track, and it’s been roses ever since.
Granted, he’s kept a low profile recently, but the haute couture collection he’ll be presenting later today for Jean Paul Gaultier will no doubt prove that he has much more to give. So, before then, brush up on the milestone moments, design development and viral sensations that have marked his career to date.
Noughties Haider
Haider has always been achingly cool, a fact made clear when he launched his eponymous label one fateful day in March 2001. Self-funded, his AW02 offering proved him to be a dab hand at draping and leatherwork, but, despite the bevvy of woven mini bombers and knotted peplums, there was no press on the guest list. Luckily, Lane Crawford’s fashion director Sarah Ruston had rocked up on a whim, securing her lot.
Not only did it garner buyers’ attention, but it also struck a chord with Ruffo Leathers – a premium leather brand spotlighting young talent in guest collections for its Ruffo Research line. Namechecking success stories including Raf Simons and A.F. Vandervorst, the initiative had a strong track record in spring-boarding careers – including Haider’s, who presented a mud-brown and gunmetal grey melange of scanty cuts, low-rise trews and subtly gender-bending pieces for AW03, backed by the company.
At his own house, Haider steadily built a reputation for a cinched, clingy and lightly swaddled silhouette. It was – then and now – daring, with casual nip-slips beneath liberal necklines, naked dresses in organza and sleeveless body suits. Not without its critics, the wanton femininity raised eyebrows, but by the time he sent a model down the runway with a breast cupped beneath her palm for SS10, such insouciant styling was par for the course.
Team Tilda
As much as he can, Haider keeps a slight distance from the showbiz of Planet Mode. As such, celebrity endorsements was low on his agenda, trumped by organic friendships. If that sounds trite, consider his two-decade-and-counting relationship with Tilda Swinton, who he’s regularly created buzzy red-carpet looks for, dating back to 2004 when Tilda set Cannes Film Festival alight and their bond began.
The perfect match for Haider’s designs, the androgyne has been a confidante and travel buddy for Haider, with a penchant for his skirt suits, paillette gowns and other tapis-rouge serves. Beyond paparazzi pics, the fruits of their collaborative relationship have been seen on countless front-rows, as well as campaigns for Mercedes-Benz, where Swinton modelled Haider’s designs before filmmaker Roe Ethridge. “We know Haider’s shows, we know how beautifully the clothes move – and the movement is such an important part of the whole DNA of his work – but when we see still photographs of the clothes we kind of want to see them moving,” she said of the commercial. “So, to do a film with Haider’s work was really delightful.”
Tailored Tweenies
By the 2010s, Haider had established an audience well beyond his original cult. Etched into fashion folklore, his designs were worn far and wide, setting the stage for his next development: a more mature woman. In his eyes, the Haider woman had always been elusive, a mystery he sought to solve through clothes. “You could not understand her; she was coming from far,” he said in an interview for the New York Times in 2011. “But I think nowadays, she’s becoming more social.” What followed was fur, checks, moulded belts doubling as corsets, laser-cut lapels, and cut-out mid-riffs. Halter-neck dresses tied in bows were not gone, but simply upgraded alongside stronger, tailored shapes and peplumed suits. This was Haider 2.0.
The Acker Man
As Haider upped the sartorial ante in his collections, the move to menswear followed. A long time coming, Haider first aired his rakish skills as – curveball – Pitti Uomo’s guest womenswear designer for AW11. Besides its dearth of womenswear, this foray gave a taste of the themes now inherent to his menswear line. Indeed, the kimono jackets, leopard prints and dandified touches we saw then made themselves felt in Haider’s official men’s debut for SS14, where low-waisted tapered trousers and curve-hugging waistcoats really took hold. Later collections followed suit (sorry!), subbing in herringbone patterns, tighter crotches and swashbuckling chutzpah aplenty.
Berluti Boy
Haider’s menswear is a gift that keeps on giving. Not long after its launch, Haider took the reins at Berluti for AW17, immediately softening and feminising the age-old house, which was LVMH’s last men’s only brand. An ultra-luxury label, on par with Loro Piana and Hermès, it was a daunting assignment, but Haider somehow made it his own without desecrating house codes. Here, burnt orange hues chimed with heritage (originally, Berluti was a bootmaker famed for its coloured leather patinas), while sharpened pleats, tweeds and carte blanche pieces like yellow biker jackets revitalised the gentleman’s outfitter. Financially, the boy did good, and his chiselled-toe shoes, cowboy boots and melting-butter leathers remain key pieces in the maison’s archive – even if he only managed 18 months before jumping ship.
Team Timmy
The ultimate fashion-film bromance, Haider and his ‘little bro’ Timothée Chalamet first crossed paths when a young TC was promoting Call Me By Your Name. Dressed to the nines in Haider’s Berluti – think an emerald velvet tux or high-water suit pants and suede jacket combo – Hollywood’s favourite twink was beginning his journey to fashion royalty. And if that sounds like a staid start, just look at the later ‘fits. We’re talking angelic white tuxedos and Haider’s knock-out numbers including that belted satin suit in liquid mercury and the backless jumpsuit every glamour gay was after.
The Fila Rave
Always up for a challenge, Haider’s recent return to the runway came in an off-schedule show deep in the bowels of Manchester’s Mayfield Depot, where Warehouse Project runs. Approached by the sportswear giant, Haider was taken aback given his track record as a logo-less designer par excellence. Nonetheless, he accepted, and served up a gabber-soundtracked bonanza of windbreakers, leggings, goggles and swim hats, inspired by the city’s many youth cultures across generations. The day-glow colours, stark white lighting and blinding catwalk, together, set the tone for the designer’s brilliant comeback.