Riccardo Tisci

Riccardo Tisci (born 1974) is an Italian fashion designer.

He studied in Italy at the Design Istituto d’Arte Applicata in Cantù until the age of 17, and then graduated from London's Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in 1999.

He graduated from London's Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design in 1999.

Upon graduation, Tisci worked for companies such as Puma, Antonio Berardi and Coccapani before signing a three-year contract with Ruffo Research, a company that has helped launch the careers of several fashion designers, such as Sophia Kokosalaki.

Upon the expiration of his contract in July 2004, Tisci spent time living in India, where he began to work on his own collection.

In September 2004, during the Milan Fashion Week, Tisci debuted his first Riccardo Tisci Collection for Fall 2005/2006 in an off-calendar show.

In 2005, Tisci was creative director for Givenchy Women's haute couture and ready-to-wear lines.

In February 2005, Tisci was appointed as the creative director of the haute couture, ready-to-wear and accessories lines for Givenchy.

Brought to Givenchy by LVMH COO Antonio Belloni and Givenchy CEO Marco Gobbetti, Gobbetti called Tisci a "perfect fit for us... He [Tisci] has an elegance that is very modern, very contemporary and romantic at the same time".

Tisci presented his first Givenchy haute couture collection in July 2005 during the Fashion Week in Paris.

In May 2008 he was additionally menswear and accessories designer of the Givenchy men's division.

Tisci, under Givenchy, designed the costumes for Madonna's Sticky & Sweet Tour in 2008, following Jean Paul Gaultier and Dolce & Gabbana.

In 2009, for the encore of the tour he designed another costume for the tour's opening song Candy Shop.

For the Givenchy Fall-Winter 2010 collection, he included a new model, Lea T, a transgender woman from Brazil, his longtime personal assistant.

Throughout his career, Tisci's numerous connections and relationships have enabled him to collaborate with well-known artists on various projects:

In addition to his position at Givenchy, Tisci has collaborated with the choreographers Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui and Damien Jalet on the costume design of the orchestral ballet Boléro by Maurice Ravel at the Opéra Garnier.

Italian model Mariacarla Boscono often appears in his runway shows and ad campaigns, owing possibly to the fact that Tisci has had a friendship with her since before his days at Givenchy.

Tisci also collaborated with American rappers Jay-Z and Kanye West to create the cover for Watch the Throne, as well as the covers for singles H•A•M and Otis.

He has also collaborated again with Kanye West for his label GOOD Music on their album Cruel Summer.

In February 2017 Tisci stepped down as creative director of Givenchy, "I now wish to focus on my personal interests and passions."

Givenchy's turnover increased six-fold during Tisci's twelve-year tenure.

In March 2018, he was appointed chief creative officer of Burberry, succeeding Christopher Bailey.

Tisci was born in Taranto and raised in Como.

In 2018, Tisci was named by Burberry to replace Christopher Bailey as the brand's chief creative officer.

This was followed by a limited-time collaboration with Vivienne Westwood for the Winter 2018 collection.

Tisci's vision while at Burberry was to create pieces that walk the line between tradition and modernity with a darkly gothic charm.

His tenure lasted through to September 2022, when it was announced that Tisci would be replaced at the helm of Burberry's creative efforts by English designer Daniel Lee.

Unlike the designers before him who succeeded Mr. Givenchy himself, Tisci has had particular success in haute couture, where he asserts "When I arrived we had five customers. Now we have 29".

Riccardo Tisci's runway presentations are highly stylized in terms of architecture and space.

Tisci says of this: "My way of showing is very melancholic... I love romanticism and sensuality".