- Peter Speliopoulos
Peter Speliopoulos, born in 1961 in
Springfield, Massachusetts , is aGreek American fashion designer.Life as a designer
Speliopoulos studied fashion at
Parsons School of Design in New York and graduated with a BFA in 1981. His first job as a fashion designer was as assistant stylist withLaura Biagiotti inRome in 1982. He then worked briefly at the French couture house ofChristian Dior and later for New York sportswear designer Gloria Sachs whose label went out of business in 1992. In 1985, Speliopoulos was named creative director atCarolyne Roehm Inc., a New York fashion house that had been created in 1984. He left in 1991 to become fashion director withJoseph Abboud .From 1993 to 1997, Speliopoulos then worked as a designer for
Donna Karan in New York. He replacedNarcisco Rodriguez as head of design for the women's collection atNino Cerruti in mid-1997. While at Cerruti, he gave the label a fresh modern look using fine detail and exquisite fabrics. He left Cerruti in 2002 to return to New York asVice President of Design for Donna Karan New York. He has stayed withDonna Karan , a fashion house owned by the FrenchLVMH Group, since then.Speliopoulos has also worked as a costume designer for
Karole Armitage , a New York ballet dancer who owns her own dance company. In the summer of 2000, he designed the costumes for theAthens Opera production of "The Birds" byAristophanes . The collaboration with Armitage continued until 2003. He has also worked as a costume designer with theRambert Dance Company inLondon for whichKarole Armitage was a choreographer.Interesting facts
*Speliopoulos is best friends with fashion designer
Isaac Mizrahi who also attended Parsons.
*A believer inastrology , he visits anastrologer from time to time and uses the predicitons as a guideline.
*In 1998 he said that his time atDonna Karan between 1993 and 1997 "was invaluable to me in getting to where I am now at Cerruti." (Source: [http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1285/is_12_28/ai_53368761 Interview Magazine)] .
*He says that he is always inspired by the construction ofBalenciaga , the essentialism ofHalston and the genius of Yves St. Laurent. He tries to make his garments a mix of feminine sensuality and men's tailoring, creating versatility in a woman's wardrobe.
*Speliopoulos - together with his partner for more than 20 years, Robert Turner - is a Friends for Life Annual Fund donor at theGMHC .External links
* [http://www.abcdancecompany.at/images/PeterSpeliopoulos.jpgPicture of Peter Speliopoulos]
* [http://www.karolearmitage.com/page.cfm?pageid=285 Karole Armitage Foundation]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.