Designer Nicolas Ghesquiere

Nicolas Ghesquiere is currently the Creative Director of Balenciaga, the design house founded by Cristobal Balenciaga in 1918. At the age of 30, Ghesquiere was dubbed the “new Messiah” by many in the fashion press. He was born in Comines (a suburb of Lille, France) in 1971 and at the young age of 12 told his parents he wanted to be a designer. This ambition paid off, and at just 15 he got a summer internship with Agnes B  in Paris and after leaving school he worked as an assistant to Jean-Paul Gaultier from 1990 to 1992.

Since Ghesquiere joined Balenciaga he has turned the fashion house around, revitalizing it and taking it back to the success it experienced during the beginning of the 20th century. As a designer he understands the female “silhouette” perfectly and his famous signature outfit is skinny pants with a “blouson” jacket.

Nicole Kidman wore a Balenciaga bridal gown at her wedding to Keith Urban. The dress was an ivory one shouldered, puff sleeved gown with a silk tulle veil and designed for her by Ghesquiere and suited her classical look perfectly. Her bridal party also wore Balenciaga dresses in embroidered silk organza.

And of course he designed Salma Hayeks Balenciaga wedding dress, for her recent wedding in Italy to Francois-Henry Pinault.  The ivory gown featured a heavily embroidered bodice and full skirt and complimented Salma’s shapely figure .