Biography & Main Areas of Research Interest

Zandra Rhodes was born in Kent in 1940 and was introduced to the world of fashion by her mother, who was a fitter in a Paris fashion house and a teacher at Medway College of Art. Zandra studied first at Medway and then at the Royal College of Art in London. Her major area of study was textile design.

Her early textile fashion designs were considered too outrageous by the traditional British manufacturers, so in 1969, she established her own retail outlet in the fashionable Fulham Road in West London. Zandra's own lifestyle has proved to be as dramatic, glamorous and extrovert as her designs. With her bright green hair (later changed to a spectacular pink and sometimes a radiant red), theatrical makeup and art jewellery, she has stamped her identity on the international world of fashion.

She was one of the new wave of British designers who put London at the forefront of the international fashion scene in the 1970s. Her designs have always been clear, creative statements, dramatic but graceful, bold but feminine and her garments have a a timeless quality that makes them unmistakably a Rhodes creation. Zandra's inspiration has always been from organic material and nature. Her innovative approach to the construction of garments can be seen in her use of reversed exposed seams and in the stylistic use of jewelled safety pins and tears during the punk era.

Zandra designed for the late Diana, Princess of Wales, and continues to design for the royal and the rich and famous around the world and a Royal Designer for Industry in 1976. She has a loyal cult following in the USA. Over the years, she has had many academic and professional honours bestowed upon her and was made a Commander of the British Empire by the Queen in 1997.

www.zandrarhodes.com

• 1972 Designer of the Year, English Fashion Trade
• 1976 Royal Desinger for Industry (RDI)
• 1978 Fellow of the Society of Industrial Arts (FSIA)
• 1979 Best Costume Award for "Romeo and Juliet on Ice" - British Association of Film and Television Emmy Award
• 1983 "Britain's Designer" Chosen by Clothing and Export Council and the National Economic Development Committee
• 1985 Alpha Award for "Best Show of the Year" - Saks Fifth Avenue, New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.A.
• 1986 "Woman of Distinction" Award - Northwood Institute, Dallas, Texas, U.S.A.
• 1990 Voted "Number One Textile Designer" in the U.K. by the Observer Magazine and a panel of British textile designers.
• 1991 Alpha Award (2nd time) for best "Show of the Year" - Saks Fifth Avenue, New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S.A.
• 1995 Hall of Fame Award awarded by the British Fashion Council for outstanding contribution to the British Fashion industry
• 1997 Golden Hanger Award awarded for Lifetime achievement from Fashion Careers of California College (FCC) San Diego
• 1997 Commander of the British Empire from Queen Elizabeth II
• 1998 Recognized as Leading Woman Entrepreneur of the World by the Star Group USA (London April 1998)
• 1998 Honor Award from the National Terrazzo and Mosaic Association Honor for Del Mar Terrace
• 2001 February,‘Pride in Medway ’Award from the City of Medway.
• 2003 Living Legacy Award San Diego, California

• Chicago Historical Society, Chicago, Illinois, U.S.A.
• Metropolitian Museum of Art, New York, U.S.A
• Victoria & Albert Museum, London, England
• City Museum and Art Gallery, Stoke-on-Trent, England
• Bath Museum of Costume, Bath, England
• Royal Brighton Pavillion Museum, Brighton, England
• Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C., U.S.A
• Royal Ontario Museum, Toronto, Canada
• Museum of Applied Arts and Sciences, Sydney, Australia
• Platt Fields Costume Museum, Manchester, England
• Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego, La Jolla, CA U.S.A
• Mint Museum, Charlotte, North Carolina, U.S.A
• Los Angeles County Museum, Los Angeles, CA, U.S.A
• Phoenix Art Museum, Phoenix, AZ, U.S.A.
• Fan Museum, London (programme fans)
• Musee de la Mode et du Textile, Paris, France

• 1978 Oriel, Wales, U.K.
• 1981 Texas Gallery, Houston, TX, U.S.A.
• 1981 Otis-Parsons School of Design, Los Angeles, CA, U.S.A.
• 1982 Museum of Contemporary Art La Jolla, La Jolla, CA, U.S.A.
• 1984 Retrospective Exhibition of "Works of Art", Textiles and Garments Museum of Art, El Paso, TX, U.S.A.
• 1987 May - Retrospective exhibition, Seibu Seed Hall, Tokyo, Japan
• 1987 June-Restrospective exhibition of textiles and garments, Columbus, Ohio, U.S.A.
• 1988 April - Exhibition of saris and textiles produced in India, "Festival of India", Seibu Seed Hall, Tokyo, Japan.
• 1989 May - exhibition of watercolours, Dyansen Gallery, New York, U.S.A.
• 1989 August - Exhibition of scarves, dresses and watercolours, Westbury Hotel, London, U.K.
• 1989 October - Exhibition of watercolours, Dyansen Gallery, Los Angeles, CA, U.S.A.
• 1991 May - Exhibition of watercolours, printed textiles and sketchbooks, Seibu Hall, Tokyo, Japan
• 1991 June - "Fabrics and Their Inspiration", Show and lectures, Goldstein Gallery, Daytons, Minneapolis, MN, U.S.A.
• 1991 September - Exhibitions of watercolours, Dyanson Gallery, New Orleans, LS, U.S.A.
• 1992 Retrospective garment show at the Mint Museum in North Carolina.
• 1993 November - National Gallery of Australia, "Dressed to Kill" (contributor)
• 1994 "Street Chic" Victoria and Albert Museum in the U.K. (contributor)
• 1996 February - “100 Years of Royal College Art” Exhibition (contributor)
• 1996 May - Interior show with pictures, pottery, hangings and kaftans. Solana Beach Studio including jewellery by Andrew Logan.
• 1997 April - May - "Couture to Chaos" Auckland Art Museum, New Zealand (contributor)
• 1997 March - "Punk Kulture" South Melbourne, Australia (contibutor)
• 1997 March - "Cutting Edge "Fifty Years of Fashion", Victoria and Albert Museum, London (contributor)
• 1997 July - Nov "The Surface and Beyond" solo exhibition, Victoria and Albert Museum
• 1997 December "Best Dressed" Victoria and Albert Museum (contributor)
• 1998 February - April "The Surface and Beyond" Solo Exhibition San Diego
• 1998 February - April "Costume of the Ancient Egyptians", The Manchester Museum (contributor)
• 1998 "Exotisme" Musee de la Mode et du Textile, Paris, France
• 1998 May - July Grace Barrand Design Centre, Surrey
• 1999 May – September “Fashion Is ” curated & designed exhibit to introduce children ages 5-15 to the many facets of the world of fashion, San Diego, California.
• 1999 May -“5 Personal Garments & All” Museum of Me, London.
• 2000 June - “Earth's Banquet ”– Designed entire stand; theme: Earth/Earth's Banquet. Carpet by Vorwerk,designed by Zandra Rhodes. Chairs, screens, carvings, tablewear, marble inlaid table produced in India for Zandra Rhodes by Papanaasum Trust. Hannover 2000 World Fair, Hannover, Germany.
• 2000 September – “Exhibition of Magic Flute Sketches” The Museum of Contemporary Art La Jolla.
• 2000 October – “Way Haute West!” The Museum of Phoenix (contributor)
• 2000 November - “British Designers: From Monarchy to Anarchy ” The Museum of Fine Art, Houston (contributor)
• 2000 July Model of the Fashion &Textile Museum by Ricardo Legorreta. The Royal Academy Summer Exhibition.London.
• 2001 March – Making Magic In San Diego - exhibition at The Athenaeum, La Jolla,CA.
• 2001 January - Sayoko, Kobe Museum, Kobe, Japan (contributor)
• 2001-2 October - January - London Fashion, Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT)NY (contributor)
• 2002 June - August - The BIG, the BOLD, and the BEAUTIFUL. Hand screen printing for fashion and interiors, Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT)NY (contributor)

Del Mar House Terrazzo Project

Proud recipient of 1998 Honor AwardThe National Terrazzo & Mosaic Association, Inc.,Leesburg, Virginia.

El Niño storms battered the California coast during the winter of 1997-1998, ravaging the oceanfront residence of Salah Hassanein and Zandra Rhodes. Since then, their beachfront terrace has undergone massive reconstruction with a new twenty inch wide, forty-foot deep and one-hundred foot long sea wall.

Zandra was so inspired by the heroic effort to save the house that she designed a magnificent terrazzo floor to celebrate the grand new terrace. Zandra Rhodes called upon Australia's foremost terrazzo artist David Humphries to collaborate with her on the creation of the Del Mar terrace. The unconventional and highly original design philosophies of both artists proved inspiring. The results of this creative collaboration are now permanently embedded into the eight-hundred foot terrazzo terrace in Del Mar, California.

The beachfront environment and the rhythms of the sun, sea and sand are reflected in the design. The design bears a flowing blue squiggle pattern of water over a base of sandy yellow and pink and contains decorative inserts of shells, marble mosaic and sparkling mirror. The artists Zandra Rhodes and David Humpries have created the magic of terrazzo in a unique and innovative way. Many of Del Mar beachgoers observed the creation of the terrace over the ten days of production and reacted with curiosity and delight at the brilliance of the end result; a triumphant tribute on the beach.

Zandra's terazzo terrace in the twilight

 Windows

Zandra uses her signature wiggle designs and floral motifs to create beautiful, one-of-a-kind windows.

Zandra Rhodes and the famous British ceramics company, Royal Doulton, have teamed up together to produce a beautiful table and giftware range called “My Favourite Things” for the Royal Albert Collection.

Zandra’s butterflies and signature wiggle lines decorate the entire range but are used differently on each piece.  All pieces mix and match.  Predominant colours are pink and aqua with gold lines, looking classic on the dinnerware but on the giftware the butterflies and swirls take on fabulous fuschia pink plates and one dish even shaped like a butterfly!

Each piece is uniquely packaged in its own pink and aqua box with butterfly decoration and butterfly gift tag.

Cylinder Vase ZARHGW 16512	My Favourite Butterfly Plate ZARHGW 16511	Oval Vase ZARHGW 16518
Potpourri Bowl ZARHGW 16520	Large Lily Jug ZARHGW 16514	"For Friends" Dip Bowl & Tray ZARHGW 16513
Large Bowl ZARHGW 10846	Entertaining Round Plate ZARHGW 16519	Large Lily Jug ZARHGW 16514

The Art of Zandra Rhodes

Glamourous hardcover reprint of the 1984 edition

This book began as a record of Zandra Rhodes' work and has become the ultimate reference book for students studying the process behind creating designs. It explains how Zandra's ideas are translated from her original sketchbook drawing, into a textile design, and then into the final garment. It spans from the beginning of her career to 1981. (10"x10"; 240 pages with over 400 coloured illustrations)

The Magic Flute

Mozart's The Magic Flute, which was the opening opera for the 2001 San Diego Opera season, featured costumes designed by Zandra Rhodes. The final opera written by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, this was Zandra's opera design debut. Filled with fantastic and mythical characters, The Magic Flute was the perfect setting for Zandra's exotic and imaginative costumes. From her stunning Queen of the Night to her delightful Papageno and Papagena, Zandra's costumes made the opera a feast for the eyes. Her fabulous creations were beautifully offset by the scintillating jewelry designed by her longtime friend and fellow brilliant artist Andrew Logan.

Crowds lined up not only for the opera but for various exhibits and lectures that showed her sketches, drawings, and costumes illuminating all of the creative energy and work necessary to achieve a project of this magnitude.

Lucky San Diego Opera fans now have another chance to see Zandra's costumes in The Magic Flute, which will make an encore performance in May 2006.

The Pearl Fishers

Maquette for The Pearl Fishers Set

Bizet's The Pearl Fishers, which premiered at the San Diego Opera on 14 February 2004, featured costumes and sets designed by Zandra Rhodes. The opera was such a success that it went onto the Michigan Opera in June 2004, then onto San Francisco and New York in 2005.

Set in mid-1800 Ceylon (modern day Sri Lanka), Zandra perfectly captured The Pearl Fishers' tropical setting and the passion of its characters with her signature vibrant colors and bold patterns. From the breathtaking opening scene to its fiery demise, Zandra's designs made for a truly unforgettable performance.

Along with fellow adventurer, friend, and brilliant artist, Andrew Logan, Zandra travelled to Sri Lanka to study this faraway land and produced a multitude of sketches, which served as the basis for her designs.

Zandra's final drawings for The Pearl Fishers: Dancer, Leila, and palm trees for the set © Copyright Zandra Rhodes Publications