Paul Tazewell has made history by winning an Oscar for Best Costume Design for his work on the blockbuster production of Wicked, becoming the first Black man to win in this category. The acclaimed designer received support from the Princess Grace Foundation-USA in the early stages of his career and went on to win the Princess Grace Statue Award, one of many prestigious prizes that Tazewell has earned during his more than 35 years in the industry.
On 2nd March at the Dolby Theatre in Ovation Hollywood, 60-year-old US costume designer Paul Tazewell won an Oscar for his work on Wicked. Tazewell had already earned several accolades for the wildly successful film starring Ariana Grande and Cynthia Erivo, including the Critics Choice Award, a Costume Designers Guild Award, and a BAFTA.
This latest addition to his trophy cabinet is history-making: Tazewell is the first Black man to ever win an Oscar in this category. Tazewell had been nominated for an Academy Award once before, in 2022 for West Side Story, but he lost out to Jenny Beavan for her work on Cruella.
Tazewell is a graduate of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. He was introduced to the Princess Grace Foundation-USA, a charity organisation founded in the memory of Princess Grace of Monaco that supports rising talents in the arts, not long after graduating from NYU when he was approached by Arena Stage in Washington and offered a one-year position on the team. Arena Stage suggested they reach out to the Princess Grace Foundation for assistance in covering part of his salary, and Tazewell was ultimately given a Theatre Fellowship by the Foundation. It was the start of a long and fruitful relationship that continues to this day.
“I continued to stay in contact with the Princess Grace Foundation-USA [after Arena Stage] and later received the Statue Award,” Tazewell told Monaco Life in an interview. “It came at a very opportune time; I was just leaving an institution and transitioning to being a freelance designer in New York, which is really hand-to-mouth as an artist. I felt so supported by the Foundation.”
Tazewell has enjoyed an incredible career in the years since, having worked on major productions such as The Color Purple, In the Heights, Memphis, A Streetcar Named Desire, and Hamilton, for which he won a Tony Award in 2016. He has also won an Emmy for his work on the TV adaptation of The Wiz Live!
In a statement shared on social media after the Academy Awards ceremony, Tazewell remarked, “Winning the Oscar for Wicked is the highest point of my life, my North Star. It is my privilege to be the first Black man to receive an Academy Award for Outstanding Costumes. I have evolved into that inspiring figure that I had been longing to emulate as a developing designer. I receive this beautiful recognition with immense pride, and I dedicate it to everyone who has the dream to fly.”
Read more about Paul Tazewell and his ties to the Princess Grace Foundation in a previous interview with Monaco Life:
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Photo via Paul Tazewell, Instagram