Betsey Johnson Brooklyn NY

"Making clothes involves what I like … color, pattern, shape and movement … I like the everyday process … the people, the pressure, the surprise of seeing the work come alive walking and dancing around on strangers. Like red lipstick on the mouth, my clothes wake up and brighten and bring the wearer to life ... drawing attention to her beauty and special ness … her moods and movements … her dreams and fantasies."

Betsey Johnson a.k.a “The Queen of Funk,” was born on August 10, 1942 in Wethersfield, Connecticut. Johnson is a world-renowned fashion designer known for her versatile, whimsical, sometimes over-the-top, yet feminine fashions.

Growing up, Johnson took many dance classes which she considers to be the inspiration to her love of “costumes”. After graduating high school, she went on to study at the Pratt Institute and then later earned a degree from Syracuse University.

If you would have asked anyone back then if they thought that Betsey would make a name for herself in the fashion world, all would disagree.

But, her fashion career kicked off in 1964, when she entered and won Mademoiselle Magazine’s “Guest Editor Contest”. Within a year she made her way to the position of in-house designer for the trendy Manhattan boutique, Paraphernalia. This boutique was famous for showcasing all the newest fashions from up and coming London designers. Here Betsey was able to establish for herself a solid foundation for building her later fashion empire by designing clothes that were sexy but whimsical and was able to tastefully put the “fun” in funky. She had the ability to make flirty clothes out of cellophane and decorate them with pieces of hardware, and yet never failed to emphasize the femininity of the woman wearing her clothes.