Von Furstenberg, Diane (1946–)
Von Furstenberg, Diane (1946–)
Belgian-American fashion designer. Born Diana Simone Michelle Halfin, Dec 31, 1946, in Brussels, Belgium; dau. of Leon and Liliane Nahmias Halfin (an Auschwitz survivor); studied economics at University of Geneva; m. Prince Egon von Furstenberg, July 16, 1969 (div. 1983, died 2004); children: Alexandre (who m. Alexandra Miller von Furstenberg) and Tatiana von Furstenberg (b. 1971).
Famed designer, began career designing easy knit dresses (1972); created the fragrance Tatiana (1975); sold 5 million wrap dresses (1976); introduced Style for Living collection of home furnishings (1977); licensed dress business (1979); moved to Paris and founded Salvy, a French-language publishing house (1985); returned to US (1990); became a contributing editor to Vanity Fair (1993); returned to retail with signature dresses (1997); became naturalized US citizen (2002).
See also autobiography, Diane: A Signature Life (1998).