Last night the great and the good of the global fashion community will descend on the Royal Albert Hall for the annual Fashion Awards, and we were bubbling with anticipation as we watched Miuccia Prada walk away with the biggest prize of the night, the Outstanding Achievement accolade.
‘Mrs. Prada’s intuition for the zeitgeist and her blending of multiple creative disciplines including fashion design, art and architecture since the beginning have made her a pioneering force in our industry,’ explains Stephanie Phair, Chairman of the British Fashion Council.
With this trophy, Prada joins the ranks of previous winners Dame Anna Wintour, Karl Lagerfeld and Ralph Lauren. Of course, it’s not the first time the industry has come together to celebrate the Italian designer. Her status has been calcified in literature and later film (The Devil Wears Prada) and honoured by the Metropolitan Museum’s prestigious Costume Institute (Schiaparelli and Prada: Impossible Conversations).
While she’s dressed Oscar winners and It Girls, her story starts at a small family run operation in Italy back in 1978. Some 71 years after the Prada family founded their accessories business, Miuccia pulled the company into world’s view with her first nylon backpack. Just four years later she introduced womenswear, followed by menswear after another seven years. Over the past four decades she’s designed a patisserie shop in Milan, an art installation in the heart of Texas, launched a second line, Miu Miu, and created some of the most iconic ensembles in living memory.
As the fashion crowd comes together to celebrate Miuccia Prada lets take a look back at her most defining designs.
Prada fashion awards iconic outfits
1 of 14Prada AW18
Miuccia ignited the fluoro trend for winter 18, which Kim Kardashian has shown herself to be a huge fan of.
2 of 14Prada AW17
An irreverent palette, scrunched socks and exquisite embroidery along with flattering silhouettes has always been the brand's USP.
3 of 14Prada AW17
These minky coloured shoes kickstarted the feather trend, which is still reverberating on the catwalks today.
4 of 14Prada SS17
This feather trimmed pyjama suit took the PJ trend to a new, sleeker level.
5 of 14Prada SS17
The layering of socks and heels is a calling card for Miuccia.
6 of 14Prada AW14
When Miuccia created this electrifying shearling coat she set forth an unstoppable copy-cat trend, but underneath the covetable coat there's a slinky slip, which exemplifies how the designer plays with proportion and texture to create a luxurious head-to-toe look.
7 of 14Prada SS13
Miuccia's construction of Chinoiserie elements - cheongasm collars here and tabi socks there - opened up a healthy debate on cultural appropriation versus cultural appreciation.
8 of 14Prada AW12
Miuccia Prada is known as the intellectual woman's designer and this is imminently felt through her strong tailoring for women and the unisex shoes she designed, like these plastic wrapped brogues.
9 of 14Prada SS12
The unstoppable appeal of Prada's flame collection was felt again this year when the iconic heel was recreated in new colourways. The expressive flames question purpose and functionality of wedges while referencing the designs of 1950s American cars and the world of Ed Ruscha.
10 of 14Prada AW11
As model Jessica Stam strolled down the autumn winter 11 catwalk she introduced a reimagining of the flapper silhouette and created a trend for 'gorilla' sleeved coats.
11 of 14Prada AW09
Inspired by Greco-Roman history, Miuccia Prada reimagined the gladiators as fierce, modern women.
12 of 14Texas, 2005
Several kilometres outside Martha, Texas, is an faux-Prada shop made in conjunction with artists Elmgreen and Dragset. This 'Pop Architectural Land Art Project' has become a pilgrimage point for mega-fans.
13 of 14Prada AW03
At a time when Gucci was selling sexiness, Prada was focusing on irreverency through pencil skirts and cardigans.
14 of 14Prada SS95
Simplicity is sometimes the chicest way to make an impact.