Lanvin © Copyright 2020
CONVERSATION PIECE
Crossing lines of dialogue – other voices, different personalities, points of view. The Lanvin Fall/Winter 2020 collection is a collection of discussions between past and present, patrimony and modernity, all using the language of the Maison to communicate to the now.
Conversations are found between manifest individuals. First, foremost, there is the conversation between Lanvin creative director Bruno Sialelli and the founder Jeanne Lanvin, traversing time and connecting the contemporary with the historical. His investigation of her design vocabulary discovers a fresh grammar and syntax.
But in turn, that conversation inevitably reflects others – namely Jeanne Lanvin’s visionary collaborations, uniquely based in dialogue with different creative disciplines – she not only designed clothes for women but, in collaboration with a family of creatives, devised childrenswear and menswear, interiors, cosmetics and parfum. All are referenced here, those individual tête-à-têtes feeding a more general discussion, each speaking of Lanvin in a different voice.
Lanvin’s 1949 collaboration with the French poet and author Louise de Vilmorin on the book L’Opéra de l’Odorat – in itself a collaboration, prefaced by Colette and illustrated by Guillaume Gillet with watercolours and expressive calligrams, is a source of graphicism. Words wind their way into illustrative lines of print, expressive watercolours are printed across feathers and silks.
The perfume and beauty lines of Lanvin are translated into bijoux de fantaisie and buttons furrowed like the flaçon of Lanvin’s signature 1927 fragrance, Arpège; Lanvin’s cosmetics suggest a whispered color palette of powder blue and blush- pink, bordeaux, rouge feu and rose-midi. Furthermore, their forms are used for accessories – minaudière handbags are formed from overscale lipstick and rouge compacts, like surreal objets d’art.
Lanvin’s conversation with designer Armand Albert Rateau resulted in the extraordinary interior of her home on rue Barbet de Jouy – a zoomorphic wonderland of animaux transmogrified into furniture, here translated again into jewellery and accessories. Menswear – originally launched in 1926 – here underscores the women’s silhouettes, each borrowing from the other.
Lanvin lived beyond Jeanne. As a fragrance diffuses a room after the wearer has left, these clothes bear traces, evoke memories and emotions. They are redolent. Garments themselves reference not only Jeanne Lanvin’s signature sinuous lines of the 1920s 1930s, her robes de style and graphic Modernist embroideries, executed like jewels, but also the work of her successors, who converse with her as inspiration.
The curvilinear shoulders and structured brevity of tailoring recall mid-century haute couture, balanced on heels formed into a graphic, abstract ‘J’ for Jeanne, a Brancusi incline. A wider conversation comes from Lanvin’s perception – as an innate, distinctly French brands, the oldest couture house in Paris. References are draw generally from this abstract notion of Frenchness: the bourgeoisie gesture of a matching parure of jewels, the gesture of a gloved wrist matched to handbag matched to shoes.
From the art of Henri Toulouse Lautrec and Pierre-Auguste Renoir, executed when Maison Lanvin was founded in 1889, come ruffled rond de jambe skirts, a froufrou femininity. Playfully, a Parisian pâtisseries box can become a handbag. Exploding those periods, the show décor expresses a notion of contradictory domestic grandeur – a maison meets a maison de couture.
Created in the Manufacture des Gobelins, using archival tapestries drawn from several centuries to create an interior reminiscent of both then and now, it is another conversation piece.
In all, a manifesto of Lanvin. Past, present, always.
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Tags: FALL WINTER MEN 2020, FALL WINTER WOMEN 2020, Lanvin, LANVIN FW 2020
Thu, March 5 2020 » Fashion Blog
Mon, February 3 2020 » Fashion Blog
SLUMBERLAND
Slumberland, LANVIN’s Spring/Summer 2020 collection pays homage to Little Nemo, a hero emerging from the deepest of dreams.
Created by illustrator Winsor McCay in 1905, the adventures of Little Nemo in Slumberland appeared as a weekly comic strip in the New York Herald that portrayed the escapades of a young boy who had fantastical adventures in his dreams. Bruno Sialelli’s own childhood memories in the south of France often resonated with Nemo, where nothing was impossible, full of happiness, fantasy and dreams. This world is perfectly aligned with the story of Maison Lanvin; a house that began with Jeanne Lanvin drawing clothes for her dear daughter Marguerite.
For his Spring/Summer 2020 collection – its 64 looks for men and women – Bruno Sialelli adds a new chapter to the Lanvin story. In addition to Nemo, he revisits the elegance of the 1950s-60s and its Swans, as Truman Capote called them. Veritable goddesses of style, these jet-setters such as Lee Radziwill and Babe Paley strutted their elegance from the Hamptons to the Riviera with irresistible effortlessness.
Jackets are cocoons for comfort and are accented by ball suits and kimono coats, all architectural pieces where the details (square sleeves, swan necks, hidden buttons) highlight the couture look. Whole pages of Nemo’s adventures can be found on shirts, pleats and flowing jerseys. The opulence of the cuts and fabrics (wool gazar, silk, lurex, linen, voile…) is disrupted by the equally luxurious but ultra- contemporary accessories: XXL chain bracelets, cheeky yet stylish mules, Pharaoh loafers in gold leather and also bags such as the Knocker and the Toy, a bucket bag in resin and cashmere leather, for an endless summer on the beach or on the road.
For men, more casual looks join the LANVIN galaxy: raglan t-shirts with 60s prints by Jules-François Crahay, then Lanvin’s Creative Director; oversized blanket parkas in narrow-striped poplin with tons of pockets…you need them for tidying away souvenirs and other talismans from your escapades in Nemo’s world.
The final parade borrows elements from mukesh, an ancestral embroidery from Egypt that Jeanne Lanvin collected. This technique – linen mesh set with gold staples – is hardly used any more in Egypt, so Maison Lanvin went to India to find exceptional seamstresses who use similar practices. The five Grecian dresses bestrewn with coloured metallic sequins required fifteen thousand hours of work. Ethereal and swirling, they close this almost surreal collection.
Bruno Sialelli purposefully chose the Quai Branly Museum and its magnificent gardens as the setting for his Slumberland. Designed by Gilles Clément, the gardens encourage daydreaming and contemplation, far from the tribulations of the urban world. Adjoining this peaceful haven, a lounge-room has been created for the occasion in the style of famous American interior designer Dorothy Draper. It could be Nemo’s room: wallpaper with wide stripes, deep pile carpet, a happy and carefree exuberance.
The show will take place in silence. Each member of the audience will be given headphones to make the experience even more physically immersive in these dreamlike surroundings. On the programme: an experimental mix designed for the occasion in binaural sound also called “3D sound” with extracts from the King and the Mockingbird, Lord of the Flies and Anna Meredith.
This sound approach is also a reflection on our era and the millennial generation, described as hyper-individualistic and in their own bubble. With this show, Bruno Sialelli does the opposite as he invites the audience to a fun and immersive experience in his own bubble, the bubble of his era: the LANVIN bubble.
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Tags: Lanvin, LANVIN SS 2020, SPRING SUMMER MEN 2020, SPRING SUMMER WOMEN 2020
Thu, October 3 2019 » Fashion Blog
PLEIN SOLEIL
Imagining his own Utopian summer, a sensual and indolent season of southbound cruises and explosions of color, Bruno Sialelli’s Lanvin spring / summer 2020 collection ‘Plein Soleil’ is an ode to idleness summer days.
Despite reminiscences of the 50s and 70s – of Marella Agnelli, Lee Radziwill and Bianca Jagger when the ocean was a second skin, the sun a living God, and incessant voyages were de rigour for jet set – the house of Lanvin sets sail on a new journey into the future.
The heart of Lanvin now beats to the tempo of an open era, where gender fluidity and diversity are part of the usual vocabulary as the mix of genres in forty-five menswear and fifteen womenswear silhouettes attest. Sailing between Taormina, Capri and the Greek islands, Sialelli diverts the codes of his “catamaran bourgeoisie” mischievously by opting for a form of naivety in masculinity.
Charming boys wear silk cardigans or oiled short coats with boy scout cotton shorts and gladiator shoes; cargo pants and cross jackets with oversized sailor collars; tunics and bags in XXL nautical pennants are playfully redesigned for the occasion where the emblems of the house – JL initials and daisies – make a discreet appearance in these Lanvin flags. Introduced in Bruno’s first collection for the house, the figure of Babar reappears as a reassuring and twisted fetish of childhood.
Lanvin blue is the main colour for summer. The historical shade of the house (Jeanne Lanvin worked with a palette of 18 different tones) is paired with the colours of the sun and sand – ochres, oranges, tobaccos and yellows. Sialelli looked to the archives for outerwear tailoring – blue wool gazar duffle coats inspired by Jeanne Lanvin couture opera coats – while suits come in striped seersucker or with all-over sequins, effortless chic without dressing up.
Accessories slip naturally into the collection. A sailor’s bag made of canvas, faded by the sea spray, and another in duvet down – as spectacular as they are ingenious – are essential companions to the bag of the season, the Hook Bag. Adorned with delicate leather marquetry and hand-painted hot air balloons, this season’s Hook Bags telescope between authenticity and refinement, between sensuality of the street and ultra-elegance.
Art deco pendants borrow from an art deco motif found in Jeanne Lanvin’s bathroom; malachite crocodile shaped cuffs shine brightly between travel inspired oversized charm necklaces with miniature suitcases and explorer tools.
Following in the steps of Jeanne Lanvin, a fashion pioneer who explored the world in her time – Venice, Toledo, Egypt and the Borromean Islands – Lanvin girls head out from Capri to Goa in long, silk, psychedelic printed dresses giving an Indian allure to the Lanvin women’s silhouettes. Like Lanvin men, they adopt a relaxed and luxurious approach, effortless and refined.
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Tags: Lanvin, LANVIN SS 2020, SPRING SUMMER MEN 2020
Thu, June 27 2019 » Fashion Blog
LANVIN “MYSTIC PILGRIMS”
The 13th century Musée de Cluny plays host to the first Women’s and Men’s collection designed by Bruno Sialelli for the house of Lanvin, sublimating the illustrious heritage of the Parisian maison in the midst of its own renaissance. As the first true purveyor of lifestyle, Lanvin encompasses a prismatic vision of fashion. Contemplating the life and times of our founder Jeanne Lanvin, a vital optimism permeates this respectful evolution – acknowledging the maison as a florilegium of creative energy.
Embodying a folkloric spirit, the Fall Winter 2019 collection roams from the Rue Saint-Honoré to Brest and far beyond, reminiscing upon cinematic and literary personas through history. Reviving Lanvin’s playful narrative in a symphony of romantic archetypes, Sialelli draws upon a multitude of moods: from nautical to bucolic, regal to childlike, the collection personifies lyrical conversations in cloth.
Pre-Raphaelite colours depart from Lanvin ‘quattrocento’ blue into powdery shades of avocado, absinthe, banana and bergamot warmed by mahogany, navy, tomato and a blaze of ultraviolet. Inciting pure comfort and a suite of leisurely pursuits, classic shapes are spliced with sensual fabrications, as Norwegian blankets, exotic Fair Isles, and giant clan tartans swaddle inherently French garments.
‘Whole garment’ knits create sinuous volumes shaped in cashmere and lurex, whilst the vareuse from Brittany, the heart-collar caban, zipped blousons and riding coats are rendered in cashmere, gabardine, intarsia shearling or wool gazar. Passing from myths to modern fairy-tales, graphics flit from Paul Iribe’s logo La femme et l’enfant (1924) on stamped muslin to mosaic monogram pyjama silks and delicate marguerite micro-florals.
Evoking the whimsy of Cécile and Jean de Brunhoff’s Babar the Elephant books, illustrated scenes float over crewneck twinsets and foulard riding boots, whilst tufted hares and foxes frolic across transparent tulle. Sensuous and in perfect symmetry, shaped necks and contoured sleeves impart blouses or dresses with a medieval line, as the scrolling imprint of illuminated manuscripts is writ large across
silk twill.
Faded Merovingian splendour is woven throughout, from gilded leather amulets and dipped thimble rings to St. George’s dragon resplendent on embroidered velvet. Voluminous kaftan gowns trail with linings inside and out, layered with bands of lace, pleated satin, and portrait print georgette.
Lanvin’s muse is embellished with abandon, adorned from head to toe with heraldic charm jewellery and porcelain chokers, fruit minaudières and salome wedges in Viennese metalwork. Grounding the season’s mystic vision, satchels, flat totes and asymmetric bucket bags are crafted in supple suede, canvas and calfskin to match fringed tennis shoes, studded clogs and moulded moccasin boots.
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Tags: FALL WINTER MEN 2019-20, Lanvin, LANVIN FW 2019-20
Fri, March 1 2019 » Fashion Blog
“For summer 2019, I wanted to go beyond streetwear, to find a new form of sophistication, to place value on design and craftsmanship. I wanted to rediscover a more intimate form of luxury,” Lucas Ossendrijver, the artistic director of menswear at Lanvin, explains.
Elements confront each other in every silhouette of this collection, which showcases a new attitude. “There are contrasts between daytime and evening, colour and black, structure and softness, flatness and volume”, Lucas continues. References and universes combined. Everywhere, the details put forth a look, a movement: on a parka, woven striped satin is applied onto a cotton veil.
A suit with an almost military appearance incorporates the feeling of a tuxedo. A simple strip of fabric sewn between the outside and inside of a bomber jacket inflates the garment and gives it volume: it’s a constant game between full and flat forms. As for the blazers, they disrupt the evening feel: on a model in grain de poudre, an offbeat satin yoke is placed on the shoulder. On another tailcoat, this time the satin appears on the sleeve.
On the same design, the satin hangs towards the front. Underneath a jacket the collar is gathered giving the appearance of a hood. The look is versatile, hybridization reigns: tops are constructed by taking the back of a shirt and the front of a T-shirt in cotton crepe. Due to the craftsmanship of the cut, they can be worn on both sides.
In turn, a mesh fisherman’s waistcoat or a quilted cotton vest lined with satin is placed on top, recalling protective clothing. Once worn, these pieces mix and lines become blurred. Even though an impression of softness is suggested, the silhouette is nevertheless controlled, sophisticated. Poetry contrasts graphic effects, where stripes subtly stand alongside floral prints and metal rose necklaces.
Both colour and material confront one other: wool and velvet; mint green, brown, and blue violet; lavender and bright red. This season, a tattoo artist has imagined prehistoric animal drawings, mystical symbols, where stars and insects form an imaginary encyclopaedia, printed on silk or viscose shirts.
Trainers with vulcanized soles, pieces in velvet or striped canvas, a tuxedo belt designed as a belt bag or hand-painted with flowers… The accessory collection is also complemented by these contrasts. Garments mingle with giant pieces, like huge moving bags draping asymmetrically.
More than ever, the jewellery is talisman-like: bracelets with hammered and varnished finish and necklaces which hide secrets and constellations within metal balls or on the back of reversible medallions.
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Tags: Lanvin, LANVIN SS 2019, SPRING SUMMER MEN 2019
Tue, July 3 2018 » Fashion Blog
Fri, March 2 2018 » Fashion Blog
“I focused on the most classic, almost passé item, drawn directly from the legacy and origin of the Lanvin man: the suit. What is a suit? Two pieces, a jacket and trousers, cut from the same fabric. I wanted to deconstruct this idea, using layering. For me, these combinations make a modern suit. I wanted to create a smokescreen. “
For Lucas Ossendrijver, Lanvin Menswear Creative Director, the season is all about where modernity and sartorial tradition meet. From the most classic English fabrics is born a brand new, hybrid and urban look. The shape of a suit is precise with no shoulder pads, a narrow waist, a broader back and ironed-in pleats. Here however everything has a different take: a finely striped coat has military jacket detailing.
The suit trousers worn with it, cut in the same fabric, are like combat pants: cotton inlay, gusseted pockets, velcro. A part-technical, part-suit parka jacket sports an asymmetric zip around the collar to reveal the detail of a shirt and jacket. Elements mix up in a new play on fabrics. Stripes and checks match and clash on the edge of abstraction. The shapes meld, only distinguishable thanks to a few contrasts. Urban details are many in this wardrobe that has been as meticulously produced as ever.
For Lucas Ossendrijver, a suit is also a form of camouflage. He toys with prints: animal outlines, plant, tree and flower patterns mix together, from the most natural colours to the most nocturnal, almost toxic. Inspired by outdoor wear, fleece jackets and coats are designed like big covers. Asymmetric knits are draped and worn with wide sleeve-shaped scarves.
Combat pants are combined with a soft, quilted leather bomber jacket. An entirely hand-painted shearling sweatshirt is worn over a suit. On a reflective leather parka jacket, the shearling-lined collar turns into a hood. Stripes, threads and studs, traditional and technical fabrics, military and urban details: everything is layered together without ever clashing…as if it was always meant to be.
The same research was carried out for the accessories. The soles of the shoes were developed in 3D whilst the sneakers have heat-sealed relief inlay. ID badges, worn across the chest, are in transparent lizard skin whilst the bags evoke map cases and lunch boxes. Jewellery is layered like lucky charms, in raffia or burnt straw.
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Tags: FALL WINTER MEN 2018-19, Lanvin, LANVIN FW 2018-19
Tue, February 13 2018 » Fashion Blog
For summer 2017, Bouchra Jarrar, creative director of Lanvin, presents her vision of woman. This first catwalk show unveils her vocabulary with allure and style: « This first season at Lanvin is an opening.»
« I’ve been exploring the paths of sensuality and intimacy, building clothes around the body, unveiling and veiling the silhouette. I’m searching for essential and harmony. I love to dress women, to reveal them to themselves, to sublime them, to cross borders between feminity and masculinity. Hence a wardrobe which shall evolve and echo itself from one season to the other »
Fabrics
Silk chiffon ; silk georgette ; satin and mirror satin ; crepe de chine ; asymmetrical lace ; organza.
Tweed ; mirror jersey ; albene.
Dipped lambskin ; cracked python.
Lacquered fur.
Cristals embroderies ; silvergilt chains ; chain mail ; embroidered flowers.
Essentials
Lavallière dress ; Modesty dress ; tied waist dress
Sleeveless coat ; trench coat ; shawl collar coat ; double lapple jacket ; perfecto jacket.
Plastron shirt ; spencer jacket ; tuxedo.
Jewelled shoes ; jewelled bags in water snake leather
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Tags: Lanvin, LANVIN SS 2017, SPRING SUMMER WOMEN 2017
Wed, October 5 2016 » Fashion Blog
Sat, October 17 2015 » Fashion Blog
