French fashion designer Pierre Cardin was BOTD in 1922. Born in San Biagio di Callalta, Italy to a wealthy French merchantile family, he was raised in southern France. Despite his father’s insistence that he become an architect, he showed an early interest in dressmaking, apprenticing with a men’s tailor in Saint-Étienne when he was 14. He moved to Paris in 1945, briefly studying architecture before pursuing an acting career. The following year, he was commissioned by filmmaker Jean Cocteau to design the elaborate costumes for his film La Belle et la Bête (Beauty and the Beast). He worked with designers Jeanne Paquin and Elsa Schiarparelli, until Cocteau introduced him to designer Christian Dior. He was quickly promoted to head of Dior’s atelier, helping design the Bar Suit and other signature pieces of Dior’s 1947 New Look collection. In 1950, he opened his own fashion house, developing modernist womenswear collections that followed geometric shapes rather than the female form. He became famous for his short-skirted “bubble dress”, the high-waisted “Navette” dress and his Space Age-inspired jackets, and was one of the first designers to present ready-to-wear collections for men and women. Many of his designs entered the pop culture consciousness, notably his collarless men’s jackets and slim-fit suits, which were famously modelled by The Beatles and The Rolling Stones. Despite his avant-garde sensibility, he disapproved of women wearing trousers, finally relenting in 1968 when he released a unisex collection of jumpsuits and flared trousers. A longtime friend of Jeanne Moreau, with whom he had a four-year affair, he designed the costumes for many of her films, including Eva, Mata Hari, Viva Maria!, The Bride Wore Black and Jules et Jim. His other celebrity clients included Jackie Kennedy, Rita Hayworth, Eva Perón, Barbra Streisand and Charlotte Rampling. He later became famous for licensing his name on merchandised products including handbags, sunglasses, perfume and homeware. Hailed as one of the 20th century’s most influential designers, he mentored Jean-Paul Gaultier and Issey Miyake, while his shrewd business sense was copied by most of his competitors. Cardin had a professional and personal relationship with fellow designer André Oliver from 1951 until Oliver’s death in 1993. He died in 2020 aged 98.