Tom Ford Bio
Leah Schroeder
3/27/13
Fash 8
TOM FORD
Tom Ford is a visionary. A creator. A businessman. An artist. He is everything it takes to be a successful entrepreneur and designer. His ambition and persistence has led him to be one of the most influential designers in fashion.
Thomas Carlyle Ford was born on August 27, 1961 in Austin Texas. His parents Tom Ford Sr. and Shirley Bunton both worked as real estate agents so Ford spent a lot of time with his grandparents on their ranch in Brownwood Texas. When he was eleven years old his family moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Ford graduated from Santa Fe Preparatory School in 1979 at 17 years old. He wasted no time and continued his education at New York University as an art history major that same year. While attending NYU, Ford became a regular at Studio 54 nightclub causing his academics to suffer. A year later he dropped out and moved to Los Angeles to act in commercials. There was a point where he was in twelve national advertising campaigns at the same time (2). A few years later he continued his education in the Parsons School of Design in New York where he studied architecture. Ford transferred to Parson’s Paris campus for a year and a half where he worked as an intern for Chloe’s press office. Chloe is a French fashion house founded in 1952 which coined the term ‘prêt-à-porter’ which means Ready-To-Wear (2). This internship triggered his love for fashion and although he spent his last year of school studying fashion, he graduated from Parsons with a degree in architecture. According to Tom Ford, architecture was too serious. “I realized that fashion was the right balance between art and commerce, and that was it." (1).
After graduating from Parsons in 1985 Ford wanted to pursue a career in fashion. He drew up a portfolio and when interviewing for jobs he mentioned that he went to Parsons, a school know for art and design, however he left out that he graduated in architecture (3). He also said that his
3/27/13
Fash 8
TOM FORD
Tom Ford is a visionary. A creator. A businessman. An artist. He is everything it takes to be a successful entrepreneur and designer. His ambition and persistence has led him to be one of the most influential designers in fashion.
Thomas Carlyle Ford was born on August 27, 1961 in Austin Texas. His parents Tom Ford Sr. and Shirley Bunton both worked as real estate agents so Ford spent a lot of time with his grandparents on their ranch in Brownwood Texas. When he was eleven years old his family moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico.
Ford graduated from Santa Fe Preparatory School in 1979 at 17 years old. He wasted no time and continued his education at New York University as an art history major that same year. While attending NYU, Ford became a regular at Studio 54 nightclub causing his academics to suffer. A year later he dropped out and moved to Los Angeles to act in commercials. There was a point where he was in twelve national advertising campaigns at the same time (2). A few years later he continued his education in the Parsons School of Design in New York where he studied architecture. Ford transferred to Parson’s Paris campus for a year and a half where he worked as an intern for Chloe’s press office. Chloe is a French fashion house founded in 1952 which coined the term ‘prêt-à-porter’ which means Ready-To-Wear (2). This internship triggered his love for fashion and although he spent his last year of school studying fashion, he graduated from Parsons with a degree in architecture. According to Tom Ford, architecture was too serious. “I realized that fashion was the right balance between art and commerce, and that was it." (1).
After graduating from Parsons in 1985 Ford wanted to pursue a career in fashion. He drew up a portfolio and when interviewing for jobs he mentioned that he went to Parsons, a school know for art and design, however he left out that he graduated in architecture (3). He also said that his
Bibliography: 1. http://www.biography.com/people/tom-ford-5936 2. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tom_Ford 3. “Tom Ford.” Visionaries: Inside the Creative Mind. Oprah Winfrey Network. . 23 Oct. 2011. Television. 4. Trebay, Guy. “He’s All Dressed Up.” New York Times 20 March 2013: E1. Print.