Prada is a magic name in fashion, one that is associated with nylon backpacks, pleated skirts, and flame heels—to name but a very few of the house’s hits. The architect of all these It pieces is Miuccia Prada. Known as Mrs. Prada in the industry, she somewhat reluctantly took the reins of the company in the 1970s before staging a revolution from within it. As Hamish Bowles, In Vogue’s host puts it, Prada is: “in her own words a woman who first resisted... then accepted...and then embraced the role of fashion designer… a woman who challenged traditional notions of beauty and luxury.”
Around the turn of the 20th century, Prada’s grandfather established the company, which became known for selling small leather goods and objets trouvés to the bourgeoisie. By the time she joined the firm, Prada studied mime, became engaged with contemporary art, and was aligned with left wing politics—famously attending protests in Yves Saint Laurent. Her goal was clear: “What I was really aiming [for],” she tells Vogue, was “changing from inside the system of the bourgeois.”
Over the years Prada has revealed, almost in matryoshka style, the various layers of her rebellion, as she took on not just her family legacy, but also ideas of luxury, the role of women in society, and internal struggles through her work. Prada’s first big hit was a sign of change to come. It was a crocodile-trimmed unisex backpack made of military-grade nylon—from a brand known for its leatherwork.
If the famous Prada backpack played form against function, her mid-1990s fashions played with ideas of good and bad taste. Prada says that she was working “against the cliché of beauty, against the cliché of luxury, then against the cliché of banality, basically.” This mission led her to the concept of “pretty ugly,” which she expressed through the use of “off” colors and unexpected prints, and by using materials like polyester.
Prada’s own taste has always informed her work, and she designs from a thinking—and working—woman’s point of view. Prada products are created to please the purchaser, who can choose whether or not to use them as vehicles for seduction. Moreover, pieces with the Prada label speak not only to self-presentation, but to a woman’s inner world. Prada says her mission has always been “normalizing the life of women,” and exploring “the complexity of a woman, the complexity of life, the many possibilities for you to be different women in different moments and playing with the different roles.”
No one romances reality like Mrs. Prada.
Learn more about how Miuccia Prada staged a revolution from within on In Vogue: The 1990s. Joining Vogue’s editorial team on this episode are, in order of appearance: Photographer Glen Luchford, designers Miuccia Prada and Lawrence Steele, journalist Suzy Menkes, and stylist Lucinda Chambers.
In Vogue: The 1990s airs Fridays from September 17. Listen to it on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Google, or wherever you get your podcasts. The LEGO Group is a launch sponsor.
Listen to “Episode 4: Karl Lagerfeld the Creative Director,” here.
Listen to “Episode 3: Brand Americana,” here.
Listen to “Episode 2: Grunge Strikes Back,” here.
Listen to “Episode 1: The Rise of the Supermodel,” here.
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