Ruth Tarvydas
| Ruth Tarvydas | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Ruta Anna Tarvydas c. 1947 Kempten, Germany |
| Died | 16 May 2014 (aged 66) East Perth, Western Australia |
| Nationality | Australian |
| Occupation | Fashion designer |
Ruta Anna "Ruth" Tarvydas (c. 1947 – 16 May 2014) was an Australian fashion designer. Born in Germany to Lithuanian parents, her family emigrated to Perth, Western Australia, when Tarvydas was two years old. She opened her first boutique at the age of 19, with her brother, and shortly after established her first label. In 1983, Taryvdas became the first Australian designer to export clothing overseas. By the 2000s, she had designs being sold in 170 outlets across 16 countries, with a number of celebrity clients, both in Australia and overseas. A flagship store in King Street, Perth, was opened in 2009, but closed three years later with Tarvydas in heavy debt. A new store was opened in Claremont in 2012, and was featured with Tarvydas in a 2013 ABC1 documentary. Tarvydas was to debut at Paris Fashion Week in 2014, but died two months before the event.
Ruth Tarvydas was born to Lithuanian parents, Martynas and Ursula Tarvydas in Kempten, Germany. In 1949, when Ruth was around two years old, her family emigrated from post-war Germany to Australia, where they settled in Tuart Hill, Western Australia.
Before entering fashion design, Tarvydas studied nursing and briefly worked as a secretary for a lawyer and an eye specialist. Aged 19, Tarvydas and her brother Harvey opened a small boutique on Hay Street, Perth, making her possibly Australia's youngest boutique owner at the time. Her first label, 'Ruta', was established in 1968. She was described as 'the designer who brought boho chic to 1960s Perth.'
By 1976 Tarvydas was enjoying success as an ambitious fashion designer, selling her audacious designs from an establishment on Murray Street, Perth. Tarvydas became the first Australian fashion label to export overseas, stocking its designs in Selfridges, London, in 1983. She was also carried by New York's Saks Fifth Avenue around the same time, but during the economic downturn of the late 1980s was forced to close her Australian retail stores.
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