Christian Cowan
{{Short description|English fashion designer}}
{{Infobox person
|birth_date={{Birth date and age|1995|11|30}}
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Christian Cowan (born 30 November 1995) is an English fashion designer. His eponymous fashion label launched in 2017.{{Cite web |date=2019-09-06 |title=Christian Cowan Knows No Limits |url=https://vmagazine.com/article/christian-cowan-knows-no-limits/#:~:text=The%20star-studded%20visionary%20debuted,and%20multitude%20of%20special%20projects. |access-date=2025-02-21 |website=V Magazine |language=en-US}} He gained prominence for his vibrant, playful fashion designs, often featuring sequins, bright colors, and dramatic silhouettes, and has dressed numerous celebrities, including Lady Gaga,{{Cite web |last=Saunders |first=Nicole |date=2017-06-30 |title=Lady Gaga & Miley Cyrus Can’t Get Enough of This Designer’s ‘Glitter Chaps’: Exclusive |url=https://www.billboard.com/music/music-news/lady-gaga-miley-cyrus-cant-get-enough-of-this-designers-glitter-7841034/ |access-date=2025-02-22 |website=Billboard |language=en-US}} Mariah Carey,{{Cite web |date=2021-10-14 |title=To Decompress Christian Cowan Heads to the Intrepid Air & Space Museum |url=https://www.wmagazine.com/fashion/christian-cowan-interview-one-fun-thing |access-date=2025-02-22 |website=W Magazine |language=en}} Jennifer Lopez, Cardi B,{{Cite web |last=Hahn |first=Rachel |date=2018-09-26 |title=Cardi B Takes Peacocking to New Extremes |url=https://www.vogue.com/article/cardi-b-peacocking-christian-cowan-purple-suit-paris-fashion-week |access-date=2025-02-22 |website=Vogue |language=en-US}} and Miley Cyrus.
Early life
Cowan grew up in Cambridgeshire in the United Kingdom. His parents divorced when he was seven and both remarried, and he grew up in a blended family of eleven children, primarily at Longstowe Hall, a 16th century estate in Cambridgeshire owned by his father.{{Cite web |last=Jordan |first=Laura Antonia |date=2024-09-07 |title=Christian Cowan: meet the British designer taking over New York |url=https://www.thetimes.com/life-style/fashion/article/christian-cowan-designer-interview-sam-smith-z66znx0rw |access-date=2025-02-22 |website=www.thetimes.com |language=en}}
Career
Cowan completed a foundation year at Central Saint Martins, then transferred to the London College of Fashion to pursue his degree in fashion design.{{Cite web |last=Peoples |first=Landon |date=April 6, 2018 |title=From Lady Gaga To Cardi B, The Sky Is The Limit For Christian Cowan |url=https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/2018/04/195696/christian-cowan-fashion-designer-interview-photos |website=Refinery 29}} In 2014, while still a student, Cowan designed a glittering pink tuxedo that Dazed magazine posted on Instagram. A week later, Lady Gaga wore it to an interview. Miley Cyrus and Rihanna soon made appearances in his clothes. In 2017, he moved to New York City to found his label, which debuted its first collection at New York Fashion Week that year.{{Cite news |last=Ferla |first=Ruth La |date=2023-04-21 |title=He Lets His Clothes Do the Peacocking for Him |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/21/style/christian-cowan-designer-sam-smith.html?searchResultPosition=2 |access-date=2025-02-22 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}
In 2018, Cowan was a CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund finalist.{{Cite web |title=CFDA |url=https://cfda.com/news/in-the-studio-with-christian-cowan |access-date=2025-02-22 |website=cfda.com}} The same year, he partnered with Giuseppe Zanotti on a line of shoes with gold watches for straps, which Cowan showed with his spring 2019 ready-to-wear line at New York Fashion Week.{{Cite web |title=Christian Cowan Releases Watch Heel With Giuseppe Zanotti - PAPER Magazine |url=https://www.papermag.com/christian-cowan-watch-heel#rebelltitem6 |access-date=2025-02-22 |website=www.papermag.com |language=en}}
In 2019, Cowan partnered with Cartoon Network on a collection inspired by The Powerpuff Girls, which was shown in Los Angeles on International Women's Day. Proceeds from the collection benefited nonprofit organization She's The First.{{Cite web |date=2019-03-11 |title=Christian Cowan Gave The Powerpuff Girls The Glow-Up They Deserve |url=https://www.nylon.com/christian-cowan-powerpuff-girls |access-date=2025-02-22 |website=Nylon |language=en}} The same year, Lil Nas X wore Cowan’s first ever menswear look, a silver sequined suit with a frilled blouse, to the 2019 MTV Video Music Awards.{{Cite web |last=DeAcetis |first=Joseph |title=Music Superstar Lil Nas X And Fashion Trailblazer Christian Cowan Partner For Unisex Collection Supporting LGBTQ |url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/josephdeacetis/2020/10/20/music-superstar-lil-nas-x-and--fashion-trailblazer-christian-cowan-partner-for-unisex-collection-supporting-lgbtq/ |access-date=2025-02-22 |website=Forbes |language=en}}
In 2020, Cowan released a capsule collection with British online fast fashion retailer ASOS.{{Cite web |date=2020-11-03 |title=Asos And Christian Cowan Release A Capsule Collection |url=https://www.essence.com/fashion/asos-christian-cowan-capsule-collection/ |access-date=2025-02-22 |website=Essence |language=en-US}} The same year, for his Spring/Summer 2021 collection, Cowan partnered with Lil Nas X to create a unisex collection, proceeds of which funded a black queer youth initiative within the Loveland Foundation, an organization founded by Rachel Cargle.
Cowan has shown ready-to-wear collections at New York Fashion week since 2017. The label made its Paris debut showing a spring ready-to-wear line in 2024.{{Cite web |last=Diderich |first=Joelle |date=2023-09-29 |title=Christian Cowan RTW Spring 2024 |url=https://wwd.com/runway/spring-2024/paris/christian-cowan/review/ |access-date=2025-02-22 |website=WWD |language=en-US}}
Personal life
In May 2024, Cowan confirmed his then-two-year romantic partnership with singer-songwriter Sam Smith.{{Cite news |last=Cherelus |first=Gina |date=2024-05-06 |title=Christian Cowan and Sam Smith’s Met Gala Debut as a Couple |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2024/05/06/fashion/sam-smith-christian-cowan-met-gala.html?searchResultPosition=1 |access-date=2025-02-22 |work=The New York Times |language=en-US |issn=0362-4331}}