the designer
Michael Bastian was born in Lyons, New York, a small Upstate town near Lake Ontario. After graduating from Babson College in Wellesley, Massachusetts, he moved to new York City, where his first job was as an Assistant Buyer at Abraham & Strauss. This was followed by positions within Sotheby’s, Tiffany & Co., Polo Ralph Lauren, and most recently, Bergdorf Goodman, where he was the men’s fashion director for five years. It was this experience that led Bastian to launch his own men’s wear line, Michael Bastian. Now in its fifth season, Michael Bastian is carried in over 50 retail locations in America, Canada, Japan, England and the Middle East.
Bastina is nominated for the 2008 CFDA Menswear Designer of the Year award. He was nominated for the CFDA Newcomer Menswear Designer of the Year in 2007, and was a finalist for the 2007 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund award. He is collaborating with the GAP/CFDA on 3 limited-edition white shirts for men and women to be launched in spring of 2008. He has recently been appointed Creative Director for Menswear at Bill Blass, to be launched with the Spring/Summer 2009 collection. He is resident of New York City.