Colin McDowell

Colin Roxburgh McDowell (born 21 June 1936) is a British fashion writer, designer and curator.

He was fashion editor of The Sunday Times and has written numerous books on fashion history and contemporary designers.

Early life and education Born in Northumberland, McDowell moved from Alnwick to Gloucester at three years old. He developed a strong interest in modern art and architecture as a teenager. He was educated at Durham University, having turned down a place at Oxford because he wanted to return to the North East. He also rowed for the Hatfield College Boat Club and played fly half for the Durham University rugby team.

McDowell completed his National Service in the Royal Army Educational Corps, but later converted to a short-service commission. Attaining the rank of captain in 1963, he left active military service that October and transferred to the Regular Army Reserve of Officers.

Career Early career McDowell taught history for a few years.

McDowell settled in Rome in the early 1970s when a friend offered him a design job. He later began working for the couturier Pino Lancetti, who taught him the art of Haute couture. He was subsequently employed by the National Chamber of Italian Fashion (Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana), and Laura Biagiotti. At Biagiotti, he brokered an exclusive deal for the company to design uniforms for Alitalia. An article written for The Observer on Italian fashion led to invitations to write for other publications, and he began to focus on his emerging journalism career. Three people were killed, including his friend and colleague Jackie Moore. Alongside his newspaper work he continued to write books on the modern fashion industry and biographies of notable designers, including John Galliano, Manolo Blahnik and Ralph Lauren.

Later work In 2003 McDowell set up 'Fashion Fringe', an annual competition to uncover promising fashion design talent and offer them professional mentorship. The initiative helped launch the careers of several designers, including Basso & Brooke, the inaugural winners in 2004, and Erdem Moralıoğlu, who won the following year. Owing to difficulties securing continued sponsorship, the scheme ended in 2013.

In 2008, McDowell served as editor-in-chief of short-lived fashion and style magazine, Distill. Reflecting on his career in a 2015 interview, he criticised what he regarded as the declining independence of contemporary fashion journalism, arguing that access to shows and a good seat allocation had become increasingly dependent on favourable coverage.

Selected publications Non-fiction

Fiction