Who Is Pierre Cardin? A New Documentary Wants To Know

The thing that surprises French fashion designer Pierre Cardin, known for his 1960s futuristic fashion, is when people greet him and say: “I didn’t realize you were still around.”

He replies: “Yes, I am.”

Cardin turned 98 this summer. 98. And somehow, he is still working, sketching designs every morning and involved in the business of his brand.

“I don’t get bored working, I get bored on vacation,” Cardin is known for saying. “I work day and night. I don't know the definition of work, because having fun, for me, is work.”

We learn the tricks of this master in a new documentary that traces his life, branding genius, work ethic and insane creative output in House of Cardin, co-directed by P. David Ebersole and Todd Hughes, which has its virtual theatrical release August 14. The film is a blueprint for any entrepreneur.

It opens with the obvious question: “Who is Pierre Cardin?” but even some of his closest confidants don’t know. Through a series of interviews, the filmmakers attempt to squeeze out any truth from his cohorts, which ends up being quite the challenge. Why challenge the emperor? There’s so much at stake.

It shows that few really know the man behind the multi-million dollar label. 

House of Cardin tries to show Cardin’s softer side, but also his ego. The designer walks us through his successful empire, boasting about his accomplishments (awards, pioneering trends, meeting Marlene Dietrich), and walks us through his namesake brand in Paris, his self-made museum in the city’s fourth arrondissement (but sadly, no mention of his recent Brooklyn Museum retrospective).

There are interviews adoring celebrity fans like Dionne Warwick (who wore a Cardin dress on an album cover), Sharon Stone (a fan of his fabrics), Naomi Campbell (who says he’s a master) and Alice Cooper (a fan of his cologne line), to chats with his employees (who wouldn’t dare risk their job for a juicy quote) and former mentees, like Jean Paul Gaultier, who was probably the most candid interviewee of the lot (he recalls an anecdote where Cardin was rejected from Maxim’s de Paris restaurant because of the dress code, which created a huge scandal).

Italy-born Cardin moved to Paris in the 1940s and founded his brand in 1950. It was shortly after he worked under fashion designer Elsa Schiaparelli (who was Coco Chanel's rival), and made waves in the press when he introduced his space age “bubble dress” in 1954.

Through the 1960s, he gained popularity for his futuristic, geometric dresses with bold patterns, polka dots and oversized pom-poms. He also made a splash in the 1970s with his mod chic looks after the mod craze hit the U.K.

Point blank: Cardin elevated Parisian fashion into the weird zone, in a time when it was classy, chic and predictable. His dresses were more music video material, ideal for pop art photo shoots.

He also got into trouble. The Chambre Syndicale (the then-name of the French association for fashion designers) expelled him for creating a ready-to-wear collection for a department store (it was frowned upon as a couturier, deemed lowbrow). But his goal was to democratize fashion for every woman.

For the uninitiated, here’s what Cardin has trail-blazed: He was the first fashion designer to feature a male model walk down the runway, which was in 1966. He also led the way for the brand logo, being the first fashion designer to put his logo outside of a garment, as a fashion statement. So, in a way, he invented the logo as part of fashion, not something to hide inside a collar, but to wear, which revolutionized modern style. Needless to say, streetwear wouldn’t be around if it wasn’t for Cardin.

Cardin also introduced brand licensing in a time when it didn’t exist in fashion, he went hog wild with it. He expanded into cosmetics, then furniture, housewares, even random products like keychains, cigarettes and toilet paper. This man knows how to sell, but at what cost? Critics said it was a bad case of over-exposure. His consumer market is predominantly in Asia.

He went overboard in terms of branding, but how far is too far? Especially today when branding across the board is expected of brands?

Some say that Cardin also launched the first fashionable sunglasses line and that he was one of the first designers to really dress celebrities.

But besides his business savvy, he knows how to curate culture, too. Cardin founded an event venue in Paris called Espace Pierre Cardin (pictured above), where everyone from Marlene Dietrich to Alice Cooper performed. It had an upscale sort of Studio 54 vibe and it surely didn’t hurt his brand name to bring people together. Talk about networking.

Today, he owns Maxim’s in Paris, the oldest Art Nouveau restaurant in Paris, and has expanded it to other locations across the world, along with a line of merchandise that promotes the restaurant’s brand, from luggage and perfume and to kitchenware, as well as a period-era museum.

One of the most thoughtful things that Cardin says in the film is the future, from the view of one futurist. “In 100 years, I won’t be here anymore,” he said.

When asked what is the main quality of his personality, Cardin said he is demanding, and that he likes to finish what he starts. “Tout est possible (everything is possible)” is somewhat of his catchphrase. It is also his approach to entrepreneurship.

“I’m not the type of man that settles for what’s already accepted,” explains Cardin. “I am always happy with my present, but I am never done. I feel as long as I can do it, why not? It’s not dissatisfaction, it's about going further, like a runner, or a cyclist, or a footballer, or an athlete. In my profession, I like to conquer, to reach the goal, not at all to possess it.”

Check out Pierre Cardin on Instagram.