Don O’Neill on the closure of his clothing label during Covid
Don O’Neill was born in the seaside village of Ballyheigue, Co Kerry. Photo: Domnick Walsh/Eye Focus LTD
The light playing across the surface of the sea below his apartment in Ballyheigue, Co Kerry, reminds Don O’Neill of his old life. Theia is the Greek goddess of light and hers was the name he gave the hugely successful fashion brand he founded in New York, where he lived for 30 years.
His dresses, worn by everyone from Meghan Markle to Oprah Winfrey, represented both his creative ideal and, in their sparking inspiration, part of his Kerry youth that he always took with him – the vista from the seaside B&B where he grew up.