Dries Van Noten was born in 1958 in Antwerp into a family of tailors and textile merchants dating to the 1870s. His grandfather ran one of the city's most respected retail operations; his father ran a chain of multi-brand boutiques. He enrolled at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in 1977 and graduated in 1981 as one of the Antwerp Six.

The Vocabulary

Where Demeulemeester chose black and Margiela chose anonymity, Van Noten chose colour and decoration. His collections are noted for prints (often Indian, sometimes hand-blocked in Rajasthan specifically for him), embroidery (frequently Indian zardozi or Parisian Lesage), pattern-on-pattern combinations, and a saturated palette that moves between turmeric yellow, pomegranate red, and deep emerald. He has staged shows at Place Vendôme, in a disused warehouse in the Bois de Vincennes, and on the steps of a 17th-century château.

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My wardrobe does not have to match. A good wardrobe is a conversation, not a uniform. — Dries Van Noten

The Business

Van Noten ran the house as an owner-operator for thirty-five years, without outside investment, expanding slowly through Antwerp, Paris, New York, and Tokyo. He refused magazine advertising for most of his career, arguing that the editorial was the advertising. In 2018 he sold a majority stake to Puig, the Spanish luxury group. He continued as creative director until March 2024, when he retired. Julian Klausner succeeded him in October 2024.

The retrospective Dries Van Noten: Inspirations, mounted at the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris in 2014, drew 305,000 visitors.