The cover of one of Antonio's books.
While attending Syracuse University I had the opportunity to show my work to Antonio Lopez, the celebrated fashion illustrator who defined the eighties with his distinct imagery. What began as an internship evolved after graduation into an assistant position. He graciously offered me "The Cinderella bed" which consisted of a futon on the floor of his large studio closet beneath Charles James gowns, a collection he had recently inherited.
It was not all glamour, I answered phones, fed his cat Bijou and made improbable egg salad sandwiches for his "girls", Jerry Hall, Grace Jones, Pat Cleveland... I was young and it was the eighties, Antonio and his partner Juan Ramos taught me that anything was possible.
Antonio possessed an inexhaustible amount of energy and enthusiasm which he lavished on his drawings well into the night while others played. I wish I had the foresight to rescue every scribble he threw in the trash which he deemed unworthy but I did instinctively save a few from the hands of the NYC Dept. of Sanitation.
Valuable trash aside, I left his studio with a sense of discipline, an appreciation for my craft and an egg salad recipe. I will look for those drawings which are stored somewhere in my closet which sadly contains no thread of a Charles James gown and post them, which brings us full circle.
