Fashion pays tribute to Michael Howells, the man who designed the most magical sets in the business

Tributes to Michael Howells are being made following the news of his death. Born in 1957 in Staffordshire, his career as a prominent production designer and art director has spanned some of the most memorable fashion moments in set design. 

"RIP Michael, your vision has made this world more beautiful," said photographer Nick Knight, a longtime collaborator who called Howells "truly brilliant and utterly unique".

In the fashion industry, Howells' innovative and immersive set designs could be found on the catwalks of Alexander McQueen and Christian Lacroix, in the advertising campaigns of Burberry and Dior, and in the pages of Vogue. He built relationships with some of the most famous fashion photographers of our time, and collaboration with designer John Galliano brought about some of his most memorable work.

BAFTA nominated, no creative outlet was outside of his scope of imagination: film, TV, theatre and dance all sparked Howells' creativity. Choreographer Mark Baldwin called him 'the most charming and visually dynamic designer I have ever worked with in what can too often be a chromophobic world'. Most recently, Howells worked as production designer on ITV's glossy period drama Victoria.  

"The only person I can think of who was comparable in their range, scope, vivacity and imagination was Cecil Beaton," Stephen Fry once said.

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