Willi Smith
Encyclopedia
Willi Donnell Smith was one of the most successful young African-American fashion designers in fashion history
. At the time of his death, his company Williwear Ltd. sold $25 million worth of clothing a year.
, and studied commercial art at Mastbaum Technical High School and attended Philadelphia College of Art for fashion illustration
. He then moved to New York
to go to Parsons The New School for Design
, the highly competitive art and design college of The New School
university. For a short time Smith freelanced with Arnold Scaasi and Bobbie Brooks's sportswear company.
, founded their own clothing company that soon failed. Smith continued to design and in 1976 he went into business with Laurie Mallet and called the company "Williwear."
He designed the wedding dress worn by Mary Jane Watson
when she married Peter Parker
in the Spider-Man
comic book and comic strip in 1987, and the suits for Edwin Schlossberg
and his groomsmen when he married Caroline Kennedy
in 1986. Smith also designed the uniforms for the workers on Christo's 1985 wrapping of the Pont Neuf
bridge in Paris
and clothes for Spike Lee
's film School Daze
(1987).
Smith worked with many other designers and artists during his time at Williwear including Antthony Mark Hankins
, James Mischka, Julia Santos-Solomon, Jon Coffelt
, John Bartlett and Andre Walker
among many others. Smith partnered with Jhane Barnes on some of his earlier shows.
Smith was the costume designer for "Secret Pastures" which premiered at Brooklyn Academy of Music
's Next Wave Festival
in 1984, one of Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company
's first major works.
and pneumonia
while on a trip to India
, apparently as a result of AIDS
. It is suspected that Smith himself didn't know he had the disease, although those around him knew he was fragile in his last days. Most thought it was just that Smith had pushed himself so hard, being such a perfectionist with his work. John Bartlett, who was working at the time of Smith's untimely death, took over design operations and remained until 1990.
Smith, who was openly
gay
, has a panel in the original NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt
and is also lamented in a poem Speak: A Poem for the Millennium March by Keith Boykin
, read by its author for the Millennium March on Washington for Equality on April 29, 2000.
History of fashion design
-Couture beginnings:The first fashion designer who was not merely a dressmaker was Charles Frederick Worth . Before the former draper set up his maison de couture in Paris, clothing design and creation was handled by largely anonymous seamstresses, and high fashion descended from styles worn at...
. At the time of his death, his company Williwear Ltd. sold $25 million worth of clothing a year.
Biography
Smith was born in Philadelphia, PennsylvaniaPhiladelphia, Pennsylvania
Philadelphia is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Philadelphia County, with which it is coterminous. The city is located in the Northeastern United States along the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers. It is the fifth-most-populous city in the United States,...
, and studied commercial art at Mastbaum Technical High School and attended Philadelphia College of Art for fashion illustration
Fashion illustration
Fashion Illustration is the communication of fashion that originates with illustration, drawing and painting. It is usually commissioned for reproduction in fashion magazines as one part of an editorial feature or for the purpose of advertising and promoting fashion makers, fashion boutiques and...
. He then moved to New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
to go to Parsons The New School for Design
Parsons The New School for Design
Parsons The New School For Design, known colloquially as Parsons, is the art and design college of The New School university. It is located in New York City's Greenwich Village, and has produced artists and designers such as Marc Jacobs, Dean and Dan Caten, Norman Rockwell, Donna Karan, Jane...
, the highly competitive art and design college of The New School
The New School
The New School is a university in New York City, located mostly in Greenwich Village. From its founding in 1919 by progressive New York academics, and for most of its history, the university was known as the New School for Social Research. Between 1997 and 2005 it was known as New School University...
university. For a short time Smith freelanced with Arnold Scaasi and Bobbie Brooks's sportswear company.
Career
In 1967, Smith quit Parsons to pursue a career designing on his own. In 1969 he designed a label for Digits, a sportswear company. In 1973, Smith, along with his sister Toukie SmithToukie Smith
Toukie A. Smith , is an African American actress and model. Smith is the sister of late fashion designer Willi Smith and former long-term partner of actor Robert De Niro, with whom she has two sons. She is best known for her role as "Eva Rawley" for one season on the NBC sitcom 227...
, founded their own clothing company that soon failed. Smith continued to design and in 1976 he went into business with Laurie Mallet and called the company "Williwear."
He designed the wedding dress worn by Mary Jane Watson
Mary Jane Watson
Mary Jane Watson, often shortened to MJ, is a fictional supporting character appearing, originally, in Marvel comic books and, later, in multiple spin-offs and dramatizations of the Spider-Man titles as the best friend, love interest, and one-time wife of Peter Parker, the alter ego of Spider-Man...
when she married Peter Parker
Spider-Man
Spider-Man is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and writer-artist Steve Ditko. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15...
in the Spider-Man
Spider-Man
Spider-Man is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero. The character was created by writer-editor Stan Lee and writer-artist Steve Ditko. He first appeared in Amazing Fantasy #15...
comic book and comic strip in 1987, and the suits for Edwin Schlossberg
Edwin Schlossberg
Edwin Arthur Schlossberg , founder and principal of ESI Design, is an American designer, author and artist. Schlossberg specializes in designing interactive, participatory experiences, beginning in 1977 with the first hands-on learning environment in the U.S. for the Brooklyn Children's Museum...
and his groomsmen when he married Caroline Kennedy
Caroline Kennedy
Caroline Bouvier Kennedy is an American author and attorney. She is a member of the influential Kennedy family and the only surviving child of U.S. President John F...
in 1986. Smith also designed the uniforms for the workers on Christo's 1985 wrapping of the Pont Neuf
Pont Neuf
The Pont Neuf is, despite its name, the oldest standing bridge across the river Seine in Paris, France. Its name, which was given to distinguish it from older bridges that were lined on both sides with houses, has remained....
bridge in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and clothes for Spike Lee
Spike Lee
Shelton Jackson "Spike" Lee is an American film director, producer, writer, and actor. His production company, 40 Acres & A Mule Filmworks, has produced over 35 films since 1983....
's film School Daze
School Daze
School Daze is a 1988 American musical-drama film, written and directed by Spike Lee, and starring Laurence Fishburne, Giancarlo Esposito, and Tisha Campbell-Martin...
(1987).
Smith worked with many other designers and artists during his time at Williwear including Antthony Mark Hankins
Antthony Mark Hankins
Antthony Mark Hankins is an American fashion designer whose dream of dressing women in stylish yet affordable clothing became a reality in 1994 when he founded Antthony Mark Hankins Inc.. By his mid-twenties he had built his own $40 million business and was named by Newsweek as one of the top 100...
, James Mischka, Julia Santos-Solomon, Jon Coffelt
Jon Coffelt
Johnny Lee Coffelt born is an American artist who lives and works in Manhattan in the Financial District of New York City. Coffelt paints, sculpts, sews, makes book arts and curates art exhibitions.-Background:...
, John Bartlett and Andre Walker
André Walker
André John Paul Walker is a political and media figure from the United Kingdom.Walker was the presenter of Channel M television's political talk show, Gloves Off, in 2004...
among many others. Smith partnered with Jhane Barnes on some of his earlier shows.
Smith was the costume designer for "Secret Pastures" which premiered at Brooklyn Academy of Music
Brooklyn Academy of Music
Brooklyn Academy of Music is a major performing arts venue in Brooklyn, a borough of New York City, United States, known as a center for progressive and avant garde performance....
's Next Wave Festival
Next Wave Festival
is a biennial festival based in Melbourne, Australia, which promotes and showcases the work of young and emerging artists. Encouraging interdisciplinary practice, Next Wave fosters the creation and presentation of works by artists aged 16 to 30 working across a broad range of art forms, including...
in 1984, one of Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company
Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company
The Bill T. Jones/Arnie Zane Dance Company is an American dance company based out of Harlem in New York City. Founded in 1983 by Bill T. Jones and Arnie Zane, the company made its debut performance at the Brooklyn Academy of Music with the world premiere of Intuitive Momentum with lauded drummer...
's first major works.
Death
Smith died unexpectedly at the relatively young age of 39 after contracting shigellaShigella
Shigella is a genus of Gram-negative, nonspore forming, non-motile, rod-shaped bacteria closely related to Escherichia coli and Salmonella. The causative agent of human shigellosis, Shigella causes disease in primates, but not in other mammals. It is only naturally found in humans and apes. During...
and pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
while on a trip to India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, apparently as a result of AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
. It is suspected that Smith himself didn't know he had the disease, although those around him knew he was fragile in his last days. Most thought it was just that Smith had pushed himself so hard, being such a perfectionist with his work. John Bartlett, who was working at the time of Smith's untimely death, took over design operations and remained until 1990.
Smith, who was openly
Coming out
Coming out is a figure of speech for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people's disclosure of their sexual orientation and/or gender identity....
gay
Gay
Gay is a word that refers to a homosexual person, especially a homosexual male. For homosexual women the specific term is "lesbian"....
, has a panel in the original NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt
NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt
The NAMES Project AIDS Memorial Quilt, often abbreviated to AIDS Memorial Quilt, is an enormous quilt made as a memorial to and celebration of the lives of people who have died of AIDS-related causes...
and is also lamented in a poem Speak: A Poem for the Millennium March by Keith Boykin
Keith Boykin
Keith Boykin is an American broadcaster, author and commentator. He is editor of The Daily Voice, a CNBC contributor, and a co-host of the BET TV talk show My Two Cents.-Biography:...
, read by its author for the Millennium March on Washington for Equality on April 29, 2000.
Awards
- Smith earned two scholarships to attend Parsons School of Design in 1965.
- In 1983 he won an American Fashion Critics' Coty AwardCoty AwardThe Coty American Fashion Critics' Awards were first announced in January 1942 by the cosmetics and perfume company Coty, Inc. to promote and celebrate American fashion, and encourage design during the Second World War. The first awards were presented in January 1943, with Norman Norell winning...
for women's fashion. - Smith won a Cutty SarkCutty SarkThe Cutty Sark is a clipper ship. Built in 1869, she served as a merchant vessel , and then as a training ship until being put on public display in 1954...
Award for Men's Fashion in 1985. - He was honored with a bronze plaque for Fashion Walk of Fame along Seventh AvenueSeventh Avenue (Manhattan)Seventh Avenue, known as Adam Clayton Powell Jr. Boulevard north of Central Park, is a thoroughfare on the West Side of the borough of Manhattan in New York City. It is southbound below Central Park and a two-way street north of the park....
in 2000-2002.