CAREER RESURGENCE With A New A|X Job And A Big Kickstarter Project, Patrick Robinson Is America's Most Resilient Designer

Perhaps no designer's career has had more twists and turns over the past 15 years than Patrick Robinson's. He was plucked from Giorgio Armani's studio in the late 90s to put the Anne Klein Collection designer label back on track after an ill-fated stint by Richard Tyler, but the label proved too far gone for resurrection. He then went the indie route with a signature collection, and was next tapped by Perry Ellis to revive that label's women's collection to acclaim from buyers and press. Unfortunately, he locked horns with a licensee who preferred to produce a watered down moderate line instead of the runway collections he showed. Next it was on to Paco Rabanne, a signature collaboration with Target, and finally, a high profile job revamping Gap's Adult and Body lines. That megabrand was too slow to turn around, and Robinson has been laying low since he was dismissed in 2011, until this week.

First, Robinson re-emerged with PASHKO (pictured below, see video after the jump), a luxurious lounge and activewear brand retailing from $45 to $300 to be financed through Kickstarter, the crowdfunding platform that has miraculously made a "Veronica Mars" movie a reality, and may turn out to be a new avenue for independent designers to support their work. With 20 days to go in a monthlong time limit, the label has raised $41,872 toward its initial $50,000 goal which looks pretty achievable at this point. Pledges at designated levels will award participants Pashko items and other special prizes depending on the amount.

That in and of itself would make an impressively creative comeback, but today brings the news that Robinson has been called back home, in a sense, to the Armani World. He has joined mall mainstay A|X Armani Exchange as Creative Director. It's a job that combines his mass-market experience at Gap with his early roots working with the Italian design giant. He will be tasked with updating the brand's offerings for men and women as part of a revamp of the chain's creative team. Once again, robinson is poised to make a big splash, but he has cleverly hedged his bets on not one but two separate projects —one an old-school sportswear chain and the other a cutting edge crowdsourced indie enterprise. We will all be keenly watching as his latest chapter develops.

Patrick Robinson Joins A|X Armani Exchange as Creative Director (WWD)
PASHKO (Official Site)

See Pashko's preview video after the jump