Katie Gallagher

Katie Gallagher (born August 15, 1986) is an American fashion designer and founder of her own brand in New York City.

Gallagher’s designs have captured the attention of Vogue Italia, Elle, Interview magazine, Refinery 29, and New York based magazines. The New York Times Style magazine “T” labeled her in 2009 as one of its “magnificent 7”, and New York magazine included her in their list of the top six New York designers. In Refinery 29, she was awarded the title of “Coolest Freshman/Best New Designer” and also identified as one of six designers to watch. Her designs have also been featured in the Avant Guardian Portfolio of Surface magazine.

In January 2010, Gallagher was named as a semi-finalist in the 2009/2010 Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation search for emerging fashion designers.

Katie Gallagher was born in western Pennsylvania and spent her early childhood there. About her youth, Gallagher has said, “I never wore shoes, and I hated wearing clothes (but always wore my cat on my head)!" From seventh grade through high school, she lived in State College, Pennsylvania, and taught herself to sew during high school. She shopped for vintage clothes, and altered them on a little Singer sewing machine.

Gallagher declared apparel design as her major after her Freshman year at the Rhode Island School of Design. Her first apparel design project at RISD was a dress fabricated from springs. Responding to an assignment to create a wearable article of clothing from unconventional materials, Gallagher chose springs as the medium. She, herself, made the springs using Plexiglas rods and an electric drill.

Gallagher interned for Anna Sui during the summer following her Sophomore year, and for threeASFOUR between her Junior and Senior years and also during winter break in her Senior year. Her Senior thesis project was a collection entirely in black. In a Dossier Journal interview, Gallagher commented about her color choice, “Everyone I asked would say that it’s really scary to do that because people always want to see color, but I didn’t really care.” The collection included well-tailored dresses, silk and leather jackets, and detailing that included silver chains and ruffles.

The work that Gallagher produced during her tenure at RISD attracted the attention of fashion magazines including Interview magazine and Vogue Italia, and buyers from fashion boutiques SEVEN New York in New York and I.T in Hong Kong. Magazine editors began to interview Gallagher during her Senior year. Katie Gallagher graduated with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Apparel Design degree in May, 2009.

After graduating from RISD, Gallagher moved to New York City and established, “Katie Gallagher”. She moved to the Chinatown area of Manhattan that provided proximity to the New York fashion industry.

Gallagher began work on her SS10 (spring/summer 2010) collection in anticipation of showing the apparel at New York Fashion Week in September 2009. She made sketches and also made paintings to establish the design for the line prior to fabrication. The SS10 collection, entitled “Veil”, was well received by the press.

When she had completed the SS10 collection, she submitted photos of the line to the Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation for consideration in their 2009/2010 search for emerging designers. In January 2010, Gallagher was notified that she was a semi-finalist in the Ecco Domani Fashion Foundation 2009/2010 search.

Since founding “Katie Gallagher” Gallagher has presented collections for SS10, AW10, SS11, AW11, SS12, and AW12 at New York Fashion Week. Her SS10 collection was called “darkly futuristic, sleek” in Refinery 29. “The Heart of the Woods and What I Found There”, her AW10 collection, featured “dark layered separates, with flashes of cream, grey and green”. Considered “sporty yet aggressive”, Gallagher's SS11 collection, “Arena”, was inspired by athletics, in particular running. “Gris-Gris”, her AW11 collection named after the voodoo talisman bag, featured “grays and blacks, asymmetries and paradoxical volumes”, and “heavily blackened eyes, and a cyborg-esque eye detail”. In discussing her SS12 collection, “Red Red Blood”, Gallagher specified that it was, “Not the blood of nightmares of brutality, but the blood that’s sanguine, living and the brightest red. Always moving, coursing, and restless inside us. All the while staying hidden to the outside world.” Detailing included makeup inspired by the bloodstream, and hair inspired by the heart. AW12 “Silent Soil” was inspired by the forest. The collection featured fabrics including boiled wool,shearling,leather, silk,and chiffon. The color palette was composed of earth tones including moss green, off-black and cream. Detailing included chaotic hair, lime green makeup around the eyes, nude lipstick, and grey fingernail polish with gold outlines. Gallagher’s “trademark” leggings were used in the collection, but not highlighted as in past shows.

Selected designs from Katie Gallagher’s work have been pulled, borrowed for editorial shoots, by Daphne Guinness, and on a continuing basis by Lady Gaga’s stylist, Nicola Formichetti. The list of stockists for the Katie Gallagher line has grown to include high-end stores around the world.

In explaining her method of designing, Katie Gallagher has said, “Everything I make starts with my paintings, which I’ve done every season prior to construction. I love to try to re-create a three-dimensional version of whatever I've drawn; it requires pretty unconventional pattern-making."

Providing a glimpse into her creativity and a sense of her design intent, Gallagher has offered, “I normally create a scene, a narrative, or sometimes a whole universe that I would be interested in making a reality, and then I fill these worlds with people. …The people just happen to be wearing what's appropriate to their surroundings and ideas. Clothes aren't really at the center of my interests; the people that wear them and their ideals are.”

On November 5, 2012, Katie Gallagher launched the Katie by Katie Gallagher diffusion line of clothing that includes both separates and jewelry pieces.

• SS10 “Veil” was shown in September 2009 at New York Fashion Week at The Tribeca Grand.
• AW10 “The Heart of the Woods and What I Found There” was shown in February 2010 at New York Fashion Week at The Soho Grand Hotel.
• SS11 “Arena” was shown in September 2010 at Stoll. New York Fashion Week.
• AW11 “Gris-Gris” was shown in February 2011 at New York Fashion Week at Milk Studios.
• SS12 “Red Red Blood” was shown in September 2011 at New York Fashion Week at Milk Studios.
• AW12 “Silent Soil” was shown in February 2012 at New York Fashion Week at The Standard Hotel.
• SS13 “Everything Forever” was shown in September 2012 at New York Fashion Week at The Standard Hotel.
• AW13 "The Winter Froze You Away" was shown in February 2013 at New York Fashion Week at The Standard Hotel.
• SS14 "Bloom" was shown in September 2013 at New York Fashion Week at 55 Gansevoort.
• FW14 "Wonderworld" was shown in February 2014 at New York Fashion Week at The Highline Hotel.
• SS15 "Fantasm" was shown in September 2014 at New York Fashion Week at The Highline Hotel.
• FW15 "Navy Eyes" was shown in February 2015 at New York Fashion Week at Pier 59 Studios.
• SS16 "Chinatown" was shown in September 2015 at New York Fashion Week at Supermarket Gallery.
• FW16 "Veiled" was shown in February 2016 at New York Fashion Week at The Roxy Hotel.
• SS17 "Eclipse" was shown in September 2016 at New York Fashion Week at Foley Gallery.
• FW17 "Hallow" was shown in February 2017 at New York Fashion Week at Projective Space.