Antonio Castillo (costume designer)

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Antonio Cánovas del Castillo de Rey (13 December 1908 – 13 May 1984), known as Antonio Castillo, was a Spanish fashion and costume designer. He won an Academy Award and was nominated for BAFTA and Tony Awards. He was born in Madrid and studied at the Colegio del Pilar, the University of Madrid, and El Sacro Monte in Granada. After the start of the Spanish Civil War in 1936, he moved to Paris and worked briefly as a diplomat before turning to fashion. By 1949 he was designing for Paquin and Robert Piguet and also made accessories for Coco Chanel. Alongside postwar Paris designers like Balmain, Balenciaga and Dior, he helped define fashion after World War II. In 1945 Elizabeth Arden invited him to New York, where he created collections that emphasized natural shoulders, slim silhouettes and small hats. He also designed costumes for the New York Metropolitan Opera and Broadway. In 1950 he joined Lanvin, invited by Jeanne Lanvin’s daughter, and stayed there until 1962. Lanvin was known for elegant, slender lines, long skirts and rich fabrics. He left Lanvin in 1962 and opened his own Paris fashion house in 1964, continuing to dress clients and create film and stage costumes. His longtime Lanvin assistant, Dominic Toubeix, later won a Coty Award in New York and returned to Paris in 1974 to present a couture collection in Castillo’s name. Castillo’s active years were 1936–1972. He died in Madrid in 1984 at age 75.