A timeline of quotes Phoebe Philo has given to Vogue tells her story so far: a girl who designed for girls at Chloé, who became a woman designing for women at Céline. Her opinions on how to go about working in fashion have never changed throughout.
“I feel like a working designer. I hope I was hired to be that, not a ‘face.’ Also, I entered the industry when this hideous instant-celebrity culture was growing up, where you could be famous for absolutely nothing. I could have gone to every opening and every event, but I so dislike it. It felt like slavery, signing up to a hideous life of gossip columns. I’d rather not.”—2005, talking about celebrity, in what was to prove her last season at Chloé
“For Chrissake, I don’t have anything to be ashamed about. I had a baby! I mean, what do people expect?”—2005, on taking maternity leave and a season off from designing Chloé after having her first child, Maya
“After my break, it felt better for me to work on an idea of a wardrobe than too much trend. I worked hard to create things that stand the test of time.”—2009, on starting at Céline. After leaving Chloé, she took a two-year absence to have her second child and prepared the ground at Céline well before her first show.
“I just thought I’d clean it up. Make it strong and powerful—a kind of contemporary minimalism.”—Spring 2010, her Céline debut collection
“I think I’m misunderstood sometimes as a recluse. I’m not a recluse. I’m into intimate relationships, and friendships, and being quite contained among them. And I’m very into working.”—2012, on her reluctance to be interviewed
“For me, the ultimate wardrobe is a white shirt, a pair of black trousers, a skirt, maybe three coats. Two jackets, a high heel, a flat shoe, and a trainer. A bag. Maybe only one bag. And maybe a scarf.”—2012, on her personal dress prescription
“I came about it through wearing it. . . . It’s always that.”—Fall 2016, backstage
“It’s personal. I wanted to be optimistic. It was just this sense of joy and life force. It felt like a celebration. I thought, If there’s anything to say at the moment, let it be with love, and let it be joyful.”—Spring 2018, backstage
