Symbols of Success Part One

All of the people about to be mentioned here have something in common. Yes, they may have once been famous, but what separates these true individuals from the rest of the famous creative world, is that these individuals never stopped creating, and no matter how their fame affected them, whether positively or negatively, they continued to devote their time passionately to their craft.

LOU DOILLON // Besides being the daughter of actress Jane Birkin and director Jacques Doillon, Lou Doillon is a French actress, model and singer, whose style has not only influenced countless individuals, but made her the muse of Givenchy.

“My style has changed since I was younger. I was kind of ashamed of my bourgeois family as a teenager, I guess - I had dreadlocks, shopped in thrift stores and pretended I had no money. At that time, I would have spat on a girl who was buying Yves Saint Laurent. I always laugh today thinking if I ran into my younger self, she would slap me. Wearing designer clothes was like selling my soul to the devil. One of my fashion mottos is: ‘It’s better not to look your best so that people can imagine that the best is really much better.’”

MICHAEL JACKSON // One of the most influential artists ever to have walked the earth, Michael Jackson basically turned every social norm on its head. He put his passion into everything he did which made him the most successful commercial entertainer ever.

“I remember going to the recording studio, and there was a park across the street, and I’d see all the children playing and I would cry. It would make me sad that I would have to go to work instead.”

LUCIANO PAVORROTI // Notably the best opera singer in the world before his death, Luciano Pavorroti put his heart and soul into all of his performances (such as the 1990 Three Tenors concert below) eventually becoming one of the most commercially successful tenors of all time.

“I’m a perfectionist, and I always think that I can do better what I have done, even if it’s good… The rivalry is with ourself. I try to be better than is possible. I fight against myself, not against the other.”

TOM FORD // He gained international fame for his turnaround of the Gucci fashion house and the creation of the Tom Ford label. He embodies persistence and what you can achieve through hard work. Despite his lack of experience, Ford called American designer Cathy Hardwick every day for a month in hopes of securing a job at her midprice sportswear company. Eventually, she agreed to see him. Hardwick later recalled the incident: “I had every intention of giving him no hope. I asked him who his favorite European designers were. He said, ‘Armani and Chanel.’ Months later I asked him why he said that, and he said, ‘Because you were wearing something Armani’. Is it any wonder he got the job?” Ford worked as a design assistant for Hardwick for two years.

“As a fashion designer, I was always aware that I was not an artist, because I was creating something that was made to be sold, marketed, used, and ultimately discarded.”

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