A California native, Owens is of half-Mexican ancestry and was raised in Portersville, a town known more for its agriculture rather than burgeoning Avant-Garde designers. Rick Owens was brought up in a traditionally conservative household and attended Catholic private school, where he was chastised and misunderstood by his peers. One can see the pivotal role this had in developing his independent nature and self-expressionist attitude.

The designers' early years in Los Angeles consisted of fraternizing with punks and derelicts on Sunset Boulevard in the local Hollywood music scene. After a brief stint at Otis College, he dropped out of the art school to attend L.A. Trade-Technical College where he learned the basics of pattern making and design. It was also here that he met his former boss, mentor, muse, and lifelong partner, Michelle Lamy. A decadent French woman and socialite who owned an affordable sportswear brand, “Lamy”. Michelle was an unabashed party-goer and her eccentric nature would rub off on Owens who was employed at her company as a lead pattern maker. After some time together, the two ended their previous relationships and eventually married. It was during this period that the two delved into the excesses of prolonged drug and alcohol usage. This brief span of benders and revelry inevitably became the catalyst for Owens to straighten his act and dive deep into a stoic routine.

In the mid-90s, having had enough of his secure day-to-day lifestyle and pattern making trade, Rick decided to take steps to launch his clothing line. The pursuit of an ideal was alive and well in the now 40-year-old Owens. His sense of discipline had been largely cultivated by this point, and while he had no lofty ambitions in regards to designing, nor visions of future wealth he took the steps necessary to create without the burden of finance.

In 1994 Owens began selling his garments at Charles Gallay. At the time, Gallay’s boutique was one of the only L.A. retailers willing to carry risky, Avant-Garde designers. Owens’ pieces were displayed proudly in his store and the owner readily paid Rick in advance. This was how the world viewed most of Owens’ first collections, through boutiques and private clientele in Los Angeles. Through this, he had developed a steady patronage of women who were passionate about his designs.

From the onset, Rick Owens has been concerned with the “other” in every sense of the word. The evocative shapes he designs posit the question, is there more to beauty than what we are being fed? Rick answers with a triumphant "yes" and showcases his pieces as an alternative to convention, not a replacement for it. Those who are on board with Rick’s vision are usually proud devotees, confident enough to wear his experimental garments and buy his lavish brutalist furniture. His first collections would foreshadow the glamorous goth aesthetic Owens would cultivate later on into the early 2000s.

Spring Summer 1998’s collection “Monsters” featured elegant draping techniques. The way the dresses would billow out onto the floor like the libidinal shape of a petal alludes to Mapplethorpe’s tulips. Flamboyant and bestial items like “monkey-fur” leather jackets that on one hand recall King-Kong and on the other, extravagant evening-wear. Owens was also among the first to feature trans sex workers for his presentations, early images of the collection showcased, “Goddess Bunny”, an initial employee of Rick’s who served as his fit model in his Los Angeles studio during the late 90s. This mysterious sense of “other” would be further explored in his later work, though the foundation is set beautifully with these original themes, personalities, and pieces.

In a career-defining moment, a photo of Kate Moss in one of Owens' leather jackets ended up on the pages of Vogue Paris. Corrine Day, the photographer responsible for the image with Moss at the time generated some well-deserved buzz in the fashion community. A year later, Owens was sponsored by Vogue America to present his first runway collection for New York Fashion Week.

Unsure if the mainstream fashion crowd would tolerate a “slower” designer, Owens expressed some trepidation in the wake of his first runway show. Sponsored by American Vogue, Rick reluctantly agreed to present his 2002 Fall collection “Sparrows”. Critics immediately saw potential in Owens' work, with some pointing out that the American designer had already established a cult following amongst his female clientele.

A subdued debut, the collection was mute of color, favoring earth tones, blacks, and grays. Devoid of the spectacle and high production value of today's Rick Owens presentations, "Sparrow" showcased Rick at his most bare and vulnerable. His famed treated leather jackets, still appearing primal and futuristic were a highlight, paired with dresses and corduroy tailored trousers. The extra draping fabric would extend to hoods and balaclavas, giving the models a pure yet ephemeral air to them.

A year following the show, Owens and Michele would permanently relocate to Paris. The abrupt move was due in part to an armed mugging that took place in L.A., no longer feeling safe, Owens moved their entire studio and living situations to Paris. He continues to live and operate in Paris where the majority of his collections are shown to this day.