Oliver Christian Herold backstage Spring 2002
Photo by Visko Hatfield
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Address:
225 East 5th Street
Suite 4A
New York, NY 10003
Tel: (212) 614-0564
Fax: (212) 614-0564
Website: www.oliverchristianherold.com

Backstage:
Model Faces
Eyes of The Beholder
Backstage Coverage

Oliver Christian Herold Spring 2002
Photo by Visko Hatfield

Sep 7, 2001/FWD/ --- When designer Oliver Christian Herold was 14-years-old, someone caused a stir in his hometown of Washington DC by dousing a monument of Christopher Columbus with red paint. "At that time I had no idea why it was in the news," Herold, 30, says. But the incident was one of the first to raise Herold's awareness of the exploitation of Native American symbolism - a theme that drives his fashion endeavors to this day.

"It just happened to be one of the things that I kept feeling strongly against - I find it appalling," Herold says about athletic teams or corporations such as the Washington Redskins or Atlanta Braves that use Native American images on their uniforms and as mascots. Herold protests such practices with pieces like a white and red Fiorucci T-shirt with a print of a Native American on which he has written in black marker "No gentle Pain." Another item - an elegant, burgundy lace evening dress - hides an Ohio police chevron that uses Native American imagery behind pheasant feathers.

Having been named a "Rising Star" by the Fashion Group International already, Herold, who calls himself a "high fashion women's designer," is one of the most closely watched this season. He'll be making his debut at Seventh on Sixth this fashion week, and buyers from Henri Bendel have stopped by his apartment to look at the collection of mostly luxurious yet edgy eveningwear. And a small item in the New York Post about a possible financial sponsor backing out turned into good news of sorts for Herold when it caught the attention of more industry insiders.

Sitting in his small East Village apartment, Herold shrugs when he speaks about the failed deal. "As an independent designer I need to promote and market myself," he says. And so far Herold has been financing his own label by making use of his degree in international business. While taking care of his fashion business during the day, Herold works as a broker for Fleet Securities Quick & Reilly on Wallstreet at night.

"I mostly deal with the European market, so I do the night shift," he explains. "The people at work know that I'm doing fashion, but I don't tell them details," he says. "When I'm down on Wallstreet, I want to focus on my work there," he continues, with his publicist adding that he regularly tells her not to call him at the Fleet offices - and if she does, he scolds her for it.

The son of a German father and Spanish mother, Herold's interest in fashion started in high school because "there were no T-shirts that said 'Lady L.' When I was growing up, there was nothing there for me," he says with a laugh, referring to the blue T-shirt he is wearing with a pair of plaid cotton pants and a cap. The fashion-frustrated Herold joined the Pratt Institute in 1990 but left in 1992 for Marymount University's business school. "Because the creativity was there," Herold says about the unusual decision. After he got his degree, Herold took jobs with Isaac Mizrahi as a production coordinator to learn the "ins and outs of the business. It's important as a designer," he explains. After freelance gigs at Donna Karan and Ralph Lauren, doing both design and production work, Herold got a full scholarship at the Fashion Institute of Technology.

"I think I'll add a nice spark to the American Collections," he says confidently. "I look up to Karl Lagerfeld and Christian Lacroix - they have an endless creativity and it's not like in the U.S. where 'Is it sellable?' is the most important aspect."

"I'm very content - we're ready for it," Herold says a day before he starts casting models for the show. (ID's Brazilian stunner Ana Hickman, the model with the longest legs, according to the Guiness Book of Records, has already confirmed). Nervousness is a word unknown to Herold, who has developed a thick skin thanks to the recent economic downturn he's had to handle in his parallel life. "The Nasdaq has been down 100 points every day for the last week - this is nothing," he says with a smile.