Ana has designs on followers of high fashion

DESIGNER Ana Salazar first emerged on the fashion scene in 1972, when she developed a new concept for clothing in Portugal.

She changed the shape of fashion shows to the extent that, by the late 1970s, her shows had become major events, drawing audiences of 6,000 people.

In 1985, she opened a shop promoting Portuguese creations in Paris - one of the world's fashion capitals - and began selling her distinctive work to Milan, New York and Tokyo.

The French magazine, Marie Claire, described her shop in 1986 as one of the ''Temples of Fashion'' - an accolade only matched by being the official Portuguese representative at the International Fashion Show in Paris in 1987.

She is regarded by the Portuguese press as its pioneer of fashion, and has worked closely with Portex and the Portuguese Industrial Association over the years to help promote the work of new designers at every level.

At the 1985 Museu do Traje, she was invited to open the ''Espaco Anos 80'' and is also well-known for creating the uniforms of Air Atlantis and the staff of the Portuguese railway company, Caminhos de Ferro.