Hussein Chalayan

Biography

Hussein Chalayan, MBE, RDI (born 12 August 1970) is a British-Cypriot fashion designer. He has won the British Designer of the Year twice (in 1999 and 2000), and he was awarded the MBE in 2006.

Chalayan is currently teaching at HTW Berlin.

Chalayan established his own company in 1994, Cartesian Ltd., as well as his ready-to-wear line, Hussein Chalayan (which he changed in 2010 to just "Chalayan" because of the oriental connotation of his first name, Hussein).

Hussein Chalayan's fashion shows are characterized by minimal sets and a mood of suspense, incorporating elements of contemporary interiors, urban architecture, and geometric structures. In the shows, the conceptual and theoretical inspirations behind his garments are played out across the body.

In 1995 Chalayan clinched a London fashion design award organized by the company "Absolut". Chalayan won a £28,000 grant to develop creations for the British capital's Fashion Week in October 1995. 

In the same year, Chalayan worked with avant-garde star Björk, designing the jacket featured on the cover of her album Post. Björk's Post tour also featured several creations by Chalayan and Björk modeled for Chalayan in October 1995 for London Fashion Week.

He was crowned 'British Designer of the Year' in 1999 and 2000 and was awarded a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) on 17 June 2006. International recognition also followed, when he was awarded the Design Star Honoree by The Fashion Group International at their annual Night of Stars Gala, in New York in 2007.

In 2002 Chalayan expanded his design portfolio with his menswear line, the exclusive rights of which were sold to internet retailer Yoox.com in 2007. 

After going through financial woes including having to move his studio three times and working from home with his team in-between, he announced plans to relocate his fashion shows to Paris. In 2004, he added another diffusion line to his expanding list of design duties.

In 2007 he donated a showpiece to the Fashion is Art exhibition in aid of radio station Capital 95.8's Help a London Child charity which was sold at an exclusive auction in London.

In 2014 Chalayan was hired to design Vionnet's demi-couture line. He then joined the ready-to-wear creative team for Vionnet in 2015.

Chalayan joined the University of Applied Arts Vienna as the Head of Fashion at the Institute of Design in 2015.

In 2019 Chalayan became a professor at the University of Applied Sciences Berlin (HTW Berlin) in the fashion department with a specialization in sustainability.