Rodarte Wins InStyle’s Designer Of The Year Award

Last night, California design duo Laura and Kate Mulleavy of Rodarte took home the coveted Designer of the Year Award at InStyle Magazine’s InStyle Awards — and they didn’t do it alone. To join in on the celebration, their cult-like following of celebrities, including long-time friend Kirsten Dunst, Euphoria’s Alexa Demie, January Jones, InStyle Editor in Chief Laura Brown, and more, arrived dressed in head-to-toe Rodarte. 

“Laura and Kate’s creativity comes from something so personal and emotionally moving that their dresses almost feel like songs on your favourite album,” Dunst recalled as she presented the sisters with their award. “They are pioneers of the fashion industry, sticking to their roots and always using their home state, family, and friends as a source of endless inspiration.” 

This win comes as no surprise, as Rodarte has had quite the decade. Not only did they win the coveted CFDA Womenswear Designer of the Year Award in 2009, they were also featured in the Costume Institute at the Met in 2013 and the National Museum for Women in the Arts. By collaborating with brands like Target and & Other Stories, writing and directing fantastical films like Woodshock (starring Kirsten Dunst, of course), and designing costumes for major motion pictures like Black Swan, Kate and Laura Mulleavy have made a name for themselves and their brand throughout the 2010s. But it’s their dedication to female friendship that really makes Rodarte feel so relevant and deserving of this award as the decade comes to a close. 

For their Spring 2020 collection, rather than go the runway route, Kate and Laura Mulleavy produced a romantic photoshoot with all of their best friends. The week-long production, shot by photographer Daria Kobayashi Ritch, featured Lili Reinhart (holding a puppy), Haim, Gabrielle Union, Kiernan Shipka, Rowan Blanchard, Maggie Rogers, Margaret Qualley, and about a dozen other of-the-moment celebs, in a dreamy sculpture garden reminiscent of Renaissance-era France. The dresses followed suit, all covered in tasteful arrays of tulle, sequins, ruffles, and polka dots. The campaign was a viral success.

Anyone who’s seen a Rodarte gown knows that Kate and Laura Mulleavy can design beautiful and lavish fashion. The way they go beyond just dresses, though, is why this win is so right in 2019. Film, art, fashion, and friendship — Rodarte’s paving the way for fashion that is about more than clothing in the decade ahead.