In a new documentary, Bob Mackie talks about designing for Cher, inspiring Generation Z and starting the naked dress trend

It was also during this time that one of his most famous trademarks emerged – the nude dress with a see-through mesh construction that matches the wearer’s skin tone. Mackie says he made his first nude dress for Mitzi Gaynor in 1968. “She had a beautiful figure and loved to dress up,” Mackie says of the inspiration. “(At the time) I was drawing sketches for French designer Jean Louis, who designed Marlene Dietrich’s outfits for Vegas whenever she performed. They were pretty see-through and I thought, ‘I could do that.'”

Of course, Mackie’s many nude dresses for Cher – including The dress she wore to the 1974 Met Gala – took the designer’s work to a whole new stratosphere. He remembers the moment she wore his naked dress on the cover of Time in 1975 – and the controversy that followed. “It was kind of shocking and wild,” Mackie says. “We didn’t expect that at all. In some places in the country it was banned from newspaper stands or the covers were torn off. I mean, it was just really silly. Today you’re lucky if you can cover them all.”

Mackie was obviously ahead of his time with this look, as the nude dress is still very popular. (In fact, it was one of the biggest red carpet trends this year, with It girls like Bella Hadid, Charli XCX, and Zoe Kravitz all wearing completely sheer designs.) For Mackie, this copycat Is a form of flattery. “For a while they were throwing away my old stuff and no one cared much about it,” he says. “Now all of a sudden these young artists want to borrow things from my archive or want me to do special things for them.”

Lately, Mackie’s archival dresses have been a hit with the next generation of talent: We’ve seen his pieces on Sabrina Carpenter, Miley Cyrus, Zendaya, and more. Often, stars or their stylists approach him directly to revive one of his older designs – although he remains selective about who gets access to the precious gems. “I don’t like giving things out to people if I don’t think it’s going to look good on them,” Mackie says. “I’m very careful about what I put on people and how they look.” But when he dresses celebrities, Mackie says it’s definitely special to see his designs given new life. “Miley is one of those stars who was born for the stage,” says Mackie. (When she wore his dress to the Grammys, it immediately went viral.) “You just watch her do her thing at the Grammys and you’re like, ‘Okay, honey, that’s you’ work on it.’”

Photo: Getty Images

Photo: Getty Images

It’s not just young Hollywood stars calling Mackie about her looks. Many Generation Z fashion lovers document their Bob Mackie finds on TikTok. Although the designer hasn’t seen these videos yet – “I’m not (on TikTok), I’m an old dinosaur,” he says – he appreciates the passion for his work. “It’s nice if things go on like this forever, I guess. The clothes are out there; There were times when I would do clothing collections and make dozens of the same dresses. Now they end up in these resale places or vintage shops.”