Keanan Duffty — Fashion Designer & Musician
First seen on blog.squelo.com
Keanan Duffty is an award-winning British fashion designer, musician and author. After graduating from Central St. Martin’s College London in Fashion he established his fashion label in 1999 and worked with celebrities like David Bowie & the Sex Pistols and with brands like Ben Sherman, Gwen Stefani’s LAMB & Reebok. In 2012 he became the Senior Director of Fashion Merchandising at the Academy of Art University in San Francisco. Today he’s back in New York and recently joined the Council of Fashion Designers of America Education Committee.
What does it take to get where you are today?
Tenacity and self belief and risk taking. It is important to know who you are, who you want to be and what your core beliefs are. I studied at Saint Martins in London but I am an eternal student at the University of Failure — if you are not failing occasionally, then you are not taking risks.
How did you find your passion so early in life?
I was very lucky — I saw and heard David Bowie on television at an early age and that, along with the Marvel Comics and the Punk Rock explosion inspired me to be creative both visually and sonically. I taught me not to wait for ‘permission’, just go ahead and do it.
Where do you get your inspiration from?
I am inspired by the constant evolution of popular culture and the blurring of boundaries between all creative fields. Right now I am enjoying the music and visual style of the band Lucius. Genesis Beyer P-Orridge has a great show at the The Rubin in New York. There’s so much going on all the time. Be open to it. Embrace it.
You moved from England to the US very early in life. What was your decision and could you have had the same success in England?
I grew up in a small town in the North of England called Doncaster. I moved to London to go to art school and felt it was important to live outside of the UK for at least some of my life. The Energy of New York drew me to it and I have been in the USA for 23 years now. I just returned to New York following a three and a half year stint in San Francisco where I was Director of the Undergraduate and Masters Fashion program of a large arts University. If I had stayed in the UK no doubt my life would have taken a different path.
What are your 3 pieces of career advice for your younger-self?
I have made my living in fashion design. However I would say that my passion is music and from an early age I played in bands, had record deals and have recorded and performed with some of my icons including David Bowie/John Lennon guitarist Earl Slick, Sex Pistol Glen Matlock and Clem Burke, the Blondie drum legend. I was also fortunate enough to create a fashion collection in collaboration with David Bowie, who was a true gentlemen. The career advice I would give to my younger self is “One day, if you are really lucky, you will get to work with your idols. So make it important”.
What is your personal goal for 2016?
My goal for every year is just to get stuff done. Whether it is fashion, music or education. Connecting creativity and commerce is a daunting task. I like to help you people with their emergent careers-either with advice, or connections and networking and I’ll be continuing that in the future.
See Keanan’s timeline & works profile on Squelo.
