Roy Halston Frowick (1932 – 1990), known mononymously as Halston, was an American fashion designer who rose to international fame in the 1970s. His minimalist, clean designs, often made of cashmere or ultrasuede, were a new phenomenon in the mid-1970s discotheques and redefined American fashion.
Fashion designs in the 1960s by Halston
Halston was known for creating a relaxed urban lifestyle for American women. He was frequently photographed at Studio 54 with his close friends Liza Minnelli, Bianca Jagger, Joe Eula, and Andy Warhol.
In the early 1950s, while attending the School of the Art Institute of Chicago, Halston began a business designing and making women’s hats. He garnered a well-known clientele and opened a store on Chicago’s Magnificent Mile in 1957. He later became the head milliner for high-end New York City department store Bergdorf Goodman. His fame rose when he designed the pillbox hat Jacqueline Kennedy wore to the inauguration of her husband, President John F. Kennedy, in 1961.
In the late 1960s, Halston made the transition to women’s clothing, opening a boutique on Madison Avenue in New York and started a ready-to-wear line. After several ill-advised business decisions, he eventually lost control of his fashion house in the 1980s.
Halston died of AIDS-related cancer in 1990 at the age of 57. Take a look at these stunning photos to see fashion designs by Halston in the 1960s.
Katherine Pastrie in red and white checked tweed suit by Monte Sano and Pruzan, pillbox by Halston, handbag by Gucci, photo by Tom Palumbo, Vogue, January 1960
Pia Kazan is wearing a dark natural Russian sable hat edged in velvet, made to order by Halston, jewelry by Van Cleef & Arpels, photo by Karen Radkai, Vogue, October 1, 1960
Kouka Denis in cotton knit beachcoat, self-tied and double-breasted worn over matching maillot (not shown) by Brigance for Sinclair, hat by Halston, photo by Glen Derujinsky, Seville, Spain, Harper’s Bazaar, January 1961
Model in suit of gray chiffon wool flannel worn with tan silk print overblouse by Paul Parnes, hat by Halston, photo by Louis Faurer, Harper’s Bazaar, February 1961
Carmen Dell’ Orefice in chamois-colored lacy wool dress, its waistline raised by a set-in self-tied panel by Jerry Silverman, organdy hat by Halston, photo by Gleb Derujinsky at Union Carbide Building, Harper’s Bazaar, February 1962
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