← The Run-Through with Vogue
The Run-Through with Vogue
Nicolas Ghesquière On Why He Brought Louis Vuitton’s Cruise Show Back to NYC
00:49:18
Loading summary
Transcript87 lines
- [00:01]
Progressive Insurance Announcer
This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance. Do you ever think about switching insurance companies to see if you could save some cash? Progressive makes it easy to see if you could save when you bundle your home and auto policies. Try it@progressive.com Progressive Casualty Insurance Company and affiliates. Potential savings will vary. Not available in all states.
- [00:22]
Odoo Sponsor Announcer
This show is supported by Odoo. When you buy business software from lots of vendors, the costs add up and it gets complicated and confusing. Odoo solves this. It's a single company that sells a suite of enterprise apps that handles everything from accounting to inventory to sales. Odoo is all connected on a single platform in a simple and affordable way. You can save money without missing out on the features you need. Check out odoo@o-o o.com that's o d o o dot com.
- [00:57]
Nicole Phelps
This is the run through. I'm Nicole Phelps. I'm here with Nicolas Ghesquiere, Women's Art artistic director at Louis Vuitton. Welcome, Nicola. I'm so happy to be with you.
- [01:06]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Thank you, Nicole, and thanks for having me.
- [01:08]
Nicole Phelps
Yes, we did this a couple of years ago, but we were both remote, so it's nice to be in the same room together. And it's nice to have you in New York. You are here because you have a Resort 2027 show. Yes, and often in the past we've gone to quite far flung locations. Rio, the Nichiroi Museum there, the Miho Museum outside of Kyoto. Why come to New York at this moment?
- [01:35]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
I always loved New York and the feeling of getting into the city and enjoying the energy of the city, especially for a foreigner and especially for a French person, is always very unique every time you get hit by the beauty of the city. And last time we were there for a show was 2019 and we approached the cruise collection in a different way. We show at the TWA terminal in jfk and it was fun because we took the New Yorker and the guest of the show outside the city to an airport, to the airport without taking the plane. And that was kind of, you know, very funny to do that. And of course also to make them rediscover an iconic, beautiful building which is the Saarinen terminal in the airport. So it was a reveal of the construction that was done for years. So I consider that we were outside the city and the collection was paying homage to New York, but in a very different way. We were celebrating the skyline. We were celebrating this vision you have when you drive by, when you drive in, when you get into the city. And that was beautiful to do that. This time we are in town. And that's why, you know, we felt that it was the right moment to come to New York and to be in town in Manhattan especially. So it's a very different approach. And then of course, you know, the location is really special to me.
- [03:28]
Nicole Phelps
So you're going to the Frick collection, which has just had an incredible renovation and expansion.
- [03:36]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Wonderful, very beautiful renovation that's, you know, for those cruise collection, you have a dream list and I always had one. And I still have, you know, some boxes to cross for the future. And the Frick was on my list. Why for a cruise? It's because the feeling of that, you know, that winter garden that they have there with the fountain is a very iconic image for me of the Gilded Age of New York. And there is that idea of traveling. There is that idea of cruise for me, for the imaginary, a cruise collection is complex because it's done for people that supposed to travel with summer clothes in winter. But of course, today it doesn't mean anything really. I mean, it still means something, but it doesn't mean really that you physically travel with those clothes. So this is a very interesting collection in a way. You mix season, you mix texture and feelings and winter and summer doesn't matter for a cruise collection. So it's great. And I think the Frick was a very beautiful. Is a very beautiful place to express that because it has this kind of, you know, out of season feeling between the beautiful galleries of, you know, Objeda and the incredible painting. They have the fine art and the wood, the wood galleries that are absolutely beautiful. And again, the Winter Garden that is very about stone and water. You know, you have all those feelings. So for me, it was just, you know, when we came, we were here in November for a visit and I wanted to see the wonderful work of Annabel Zeldorf. And, well, we came out of the museum with few friends and collaborators and we were like, this is so, you know, dreamy. It's just such a wonderful playground for a cruise collection. So that's why we're here.
- [05:52]
Nicole Phelps
Tell me about knowing that you're going to show in the Frick collection alongside priceless art. How does that impact how you design?
- [06:03]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
It's interesting in the way that every cruise collection is also a celebration culturally of where we go. Japan, Brazil, as you say, Italy, Spain. We've been to many places. Every time we consider we arrive as foreigners and we bring the collection with us and you pay homage to where you are. So it's true that the Frick is extremely sophisticated. I mean the Rembrandt, the Vermeur, and this is intimidating, but it's a place where people used to live in a grand way, of course, you know, again the Gilded age. And this was a home first. And that is very interesting to imagine whose character would walk in that home and evolve in this home today, you know, and it's what the collection is about. And it's also something that is extremely Louis Vuitton. Since few years we have the chance to show in the Louvre Museum in Paris. And it's a bad habit somehow, you know, to be able to show your fashion into those extraordinary galleries that present to the world the most exquisite and unique objet d' art again. And yes, the freak is that too. So it's intimidating and at the same time it makes so much sense with the cultural world of Louis Vuitton.
- [07:29]
Nicole Phelps
And so as I understand it, beyond the show, Vuitton is supporting the museum for the next three years. Is that correct?
- [07:36]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Right. We have different phase in partnership, like facilitating like entrance for people on a Friday. I think it is. There's a Friday lv. There is supporting some exhibition too. There is. So this is important to me, important to Vuitton, that it's not a one shot. It's also, you know, being partner and being invited to be partner in such like a beautiful institution is an honor. So it was important that it was not going to be a one night show, but a true, A true collaboration, a true partnership.
- [08:21]
Nicole Phelps
Yeah. So you touched on this a bit, but talk a bit more about what appeals to you about a resort collection. How do you design differently for resort versus the main seasons which you of course show in Paris?
- [08:33]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Well, the resort is. There's a thematic that is usually more narrative. There's a story that is important to tell. It's the story of traveling. It's the story of, yeah, traveling with a collection, traveling somewhere. What is the fantasy of that destination? Everyone when they travel have images in their head. It could be something somewhere you discover or somewhere you go for a hundred times and you will have a different feeling every time. And New York is so rich culturally and in beauty that it has of course this very strong resonance. And so the approach is that is like how. How are we going to celebrate that in a subtle way this time I was very interesting to explore again the downtown, uptown, duality, confrontation, harmony. And it's of course something extremely famous and that defines New York. You know, what's really. Where is the line really between downtown and uptown. Where is the line, you know, culturally between those people? And that's an extremely intriguing research for me. And when I share that with the team, which is quite simple, you know, we're going to New York and we're going to try to explore what's the relationship between downtown and uptown. Everyone was really, really enthusiastic about it because it's collective. We all have an image. We all have sometimes, you know, like fantasies or like, like visions of who's that woman? Who's that person who evolve and leave uptown, and who's the person who leave downtown and when also. And that was very important. So I think I should talk about my first trip in New York.
- [10:39]
Nicole Phelps
Oh, please.
- [10:40]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
I was 18, was with friends. We were staying in a friend's apartment in Lafayette Street. It was a fascinating trip for me because, you know, the sewo was in full transformation. But it has a lot. It had a lot of old soho still, but the new soho was emerging. And so it was really a shock for me to see that you could live in those cool buildings and apartments. And it was literally the opposite of Paris somehow, you know. And I remember visiting as a tourist, but also getting into galleries, getting into friends apartments that were artists, getting into designers places. And of course, that created a really strong impact, I think, in my aesthetic when I later became a designer. And so the second part of the trip, I also went uptown. I think I walked uptown, actually. I'm pretty sure we did walk. And so. And so the beauty of, you know, everyone know how Central park is so incredible, and also the flashback of movies that I have seen in France when I was, you know, younger, and then suddenly I was there. So this whole thing, I don't think that thing ever disappear, honestly, in your head when you first visit New York and you discover the richness of the city. So, yes, it's there. So the collection will be. Is about that. The collect express that.
- [12:21]
Nicole Phelps
So the last time you were on Vogue's podcast, you said something that really lingered with me. You said that fashion needs aesthetic danger.
- [12:30]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Yeah.
- [12:31]
Nicole Phelps
And so I thought, especially I. I was reminded of that this past season in Paris, because your collection, you took it to extremes. The. The proportions were really strong. And will this show have aesthetic danger, would you say?
- [12:49]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
I think it's proportioned.
- [12:51]
Nicole Phelps
Yeah.
- [12:51]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
There is always, you know, a collection is always something that express and talk about, you know, people who you love and people you love without knowing them, and you wish they would wear those clothes. So, of course, there is something very, I would say everyday life about it very wearable in a. In a good way, of course. But there is also that hybridization that I love, that melange, that mix that is very personal. And I think that's where the balance of the collection is important. And you write the last collection in Paris was very nomadic. It was expressing something about Vuitton is about this travel, and it's about. It was about fighting the elements and the weather and how in the past, you know, people were like, you know, traveling and walking in the woods and the fields and in the mountains and how they were carrying their house. I know it was. And for me, this. This was a story that had to be tell for Vuitton because it was connected to the story of Louis Vuitton himself coming from Dura, walking through the mountains and the woods, learning some techniques to arrive in Paris, and had a vision for what became his company. And it's true that. That Paris is a great platform also for that. I think with New York, there is. There will be some. There's something more subtle about it.
- [14:32]
Nicole Phelps
Speaking of that show in. In March, I saw reports people called it Bog Corps. Did you see that? Like, because of the moss. The moss, the mountains, and the sort of the natural world. You seem to be really keying into outdoor clothes from across, like, world history.
- [14:56]
Unidentified Guest or Commentator
Right?
- [14:56]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Like, very without the tech. You know, it was not tech. It was outdoor clothes. But not technical or technical in the ancient way that they were protecting you from the rain, but because the wool is very felted, so it's a natural protection. But no, I did. I didn't hear that. I'm happy to know.
- [15:15]
Nicole Phelps
Yes. So, well, moving on from bogcore, we are still solidly in the month of May, and of course, at the beginning of May, the first Monday of May was the Met Gala, and you dressed Olympic gold medalist figure skater and your new house ambassador, Alyssa Liu. Tell us about the look, please.
- [15:34]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Oh, well, I want to talk about how we first met and how I reach Alyssa and ask her to. If she wanted to. To join the house. I mean, like, like many people, I discovered her during the Cartina Winter Olympics in February. And I mean, she won, you know, two gold medal. Like, I think it's the first American athlete that.
- [16:01]
Unidentified Guest or Commentator
That.
- [16:02]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
That won at those Olympics. Two gold medals. And just her style was. Was really inspiring. Her performance is crazy. I mean, how she flies on ice. And honestly, I didn't watch much of ice skating before that, except for the clothes. Sometimes as an inspiration, you know, there is sometimes really interesting things, and they put in such an extreme conditions to have, you know, to do all those very beautiful movement and dance on ice is extremely inspiring. So when I saw and her signature look with her cool hair and the stripe on the hair, and I was like, oh, my God. Like, she's really like someone I would love to meet one day. And. Yeah. So we reached and she responded, which is always a great story. You know, when you dream to dress someone and to start to collaborate with someone, to have a positive answer is fantastic. And so we met. She came to the show in Paris, we met, and we connected extremely well. So I'm super proud and honored that she joined the house. And, yeah, that's also, you know, I grew up doing a lot of sports, and I think it's also a certain celebration of the body, the athletic body. And I think it's so beautiful to see her. And I connected again with, you know, when I was extremely young, and I was, like, looking at those athletes and how they dressed and how they perform and how inspiring it was. So I guess it's coming also from something very special in my personal story.
- [17:52]
Nicole Phelps
Yeah, her confidence is so alluring, right?
- [17:55]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
It is. It is, absolutely. Yeah.
- [17:58]
Nicole Phelps
You seem to have a very strong connection with your muses. I think of Jennifer Connelly. I think of Emma Stone. I mean, they're really your friends as much as they're your muses. But talk about. Tell me about that relationship between a designer and a muse, how, you know, what appeals to you about those women in particular, like, what makes a Nicolas Ghesquier muse.
- [18:24]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
I believe we always choose each other somehow. You know, there is really that idea of, like, Elisa, like you, Rich, you send messages somehow with your fashion and you see if there's a response. I'm very lucky to work and collaborate and be friends with a lot of. Not actually not a lot. Few of the most, like, you know, inspiring women in the world. For me, there's a lot of loyalty too. You know, in an industry where changes are always needed and always, you know, asked. It's also extremely. I appreciate very much that this loyalty is strong. And I've been, you know, friend and working with Jennifer for. I won't say, but it's like few decades now. And of course, yeah, Emma. But it's also the talk we have about their project has not only as actresses, but also as producers, as entre entrepreneurs, you know, how today it's extremely important for me to be next to them in their different type of project. And we speak about that too. We don't only speak about fashion and. And I'M always very flattered to be asked when they need to be very confident, when they have to promote something or to show themselves for an artistic reason. So it's very about art at the beginning of the story and how we share some, I think a common aesthetic or how we feed each other or we inspire each other. And also when I see the choices of movie they do for me, it's. I don't know, it's a full. They open doors in my imagination. And that's what is beautiful about this relationship. And really I love to collaborate. I love when we speak about the dress, I speak about with of course, the stylists that are advising them and support them when they have a big tour and a big promotion. But I also speak directly with them and it's great, you know, because it's how they feel at that moment. It's how they want to, you know, be seen at that moment. So to consider that I could be a shoulder for them to support that moment for me is a great honor.
- [20:56]
Nicole Phelps
Yes, I mean, it is. So many eyes, so many millions of eyes on these women. Judgment at these moments. And so I appreciate that idea that you're their shoulder.
- [21:06]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Yeah. It has become extremely, you know, judgmental. And confidence is something you have to share with friends and with people you love. So we decide things together and we go for it and we hone it and like it or not, at the end of the day, we move on. And that's very important, I think, to be a group of people, to be camarade, to be next to each other when. Yeah, you, you, you confronted to. To. To judgment. Yeah.
- [21:40]
Nicole Phelps
So another very long relationship. I believe that you've worked with your casting director, Ashley Brokoff for many years too. So I'd love to hear a bit about what you're thinking about casting for this show in New York.
- [21:59]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Ashley is extremely talented woman and a great collaborator for elso. I think it's in the. And it's two decades and we did incredible work at Balenciaga already. She's a pioneer because she's someone that really also has a lot of loyalty. And when she find someone that has a potential, she's extremely careful because, you know, those girls are really young and this is very important to create a safe environment for models. And I think the actuality is saying how much, you know, this is extremely important to be well surrounded. And Ashley is first also someone that is really, really good at that. Like she would introduce you a talent, a girl. And then we, when we start to work Together we make sure every step of the evolution of her first presentation when it's about a show or a campaign is like. Is something that correspond to her well how she feel about it. And we've been, you know, we work with Freya Beha, with Rianne, we've like which there is the list of girls that we. I don't want to say we discover because I think it's the same kind of thing the girl accept also to join the story and to stay with us in the studio for the feelings and to, you know, like I believe, you know, the models are really a big part of our work and they also participate in creation. Especially also the fitting models, you know, that are there with us all the time, all day. And so to come back to Ashley, well, that's what I love about her first is that that safety in a way that I know that I'm talking to someone who's going to be extremely respectful to who she's working with. And then. Yeah, I mean we have a lot of fun. I mean we like reach some people that are different, you know, also that don't do that. That don't models. And we did like few shows that were completely different than a classic casting. This one is also that have few people, few girl in the show that are not models, they are talent. And for me they so represent different facets of in a plural way, the American woman. Yeah, right. It's like this is also beautiful to see how rich America is in representation. And so the show. It's hard in the show of course to say everything, but I wanted to express that in the show or so Ashley helped me to cast few people and there's some friends of the house doing the show too. Yeah, Alanaheim is walking the show. I mean she's. For me she's an American, she's a Los Angeles girl, but she's also, you know, a fantastic American. I mean for me she represents an American girl too. And I mean we found this artist Madi who's like, she's doing rap and so we have like few characters. I'd like to call them characters because they really are. Yeah. Inspiring. So it's good also because the models are evolve also in an environment when they can express their personality next to someone like that. They're not just models. They are like young girls that are express their individuality through the clothes to on the show. And that was always important. And I think it's something this vision I shared to Ashley too. We don't, you know, in Fashion, you say you clone the girl. Sometimes they look all the same. And it happened in some shows.
- [26:03]
Nicole Phelps
It's something that I really associate with a long time ago, you know, 2010s, you know, thank God we're not in that moment anymore.
- [26:10]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Some collection. You know, this kind of surrealistic vision was really about cloning. And then this time I think it's totally gone. And individuality is winning, I would say. And that's very interesting, I think. Of course. Yeah.
- [26:28]
Nicole Phelps
Can we also talk about Marie Amelie Sauve? Because that is another incredible relationship where, you know, you work together at Balenciaga and you work together at vuitton. Is it twelve years now? Twelve years.
- [26:40]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Thirteen years. Thirteen years. 13 years.
- [26:43]
Nicole Phelps
What makes your relationship work so well?
- [26:47]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Oh, you should ask her. She's my woman. Side, I would say, you know, she's my woman. Eye. Eyes. She's keeping me very. We were talking about, you know, secure and confident, and she's keeping me inspired also in my choices. And she's also, you know, showing me things that are very inspiring, but in a very subtle way. You know, she's someone that. She gave me my first job when I was very young and without knowing if I was going to be able to do it. And it was in Italy, and we were. She was starting to freelance herself, and we just met few months, few weeks before, and she had this offer, and she reached me and she said, do you want to do it with me? And it's where our story started. Not as friend, as collaborator. And then we became extremely close. And she's family to me, but, of course, again, loyalty. I love this idea of evolving together. I love the idea. I don't know why I'm a Taurus. This is something maybe that comes from also my education. Isn't it beautiful when you can. You are lucky to evolve and to go on in life with people that knows you, that you know well, and then you can share things. And then it's. It's. What is maramili for me? It's. It's that constant inspiration. And she's challenging me always. There is this research that is very important for her. She's coming from pictures. She worked at Vogue when she was very young, too. She grew up shooting with Guy Bourdin, Helmut Newton, many iconic photographers. And so when we first start to work together, it was very interesting because her high vision was really about a picture and how the clothes and the character, the girls would be represented. I was more into, you know, designing, of course, but also movement and how the clothes would move on the girl and how that would be real for a fashion show. And so this was, I think, a very interesting. We kind of complete each other. Can you say that in English? We. She will go with that vision, and I will try to fit that vision, knowing that I want the clothes to be impactful visually, but I want the clothes to be real first. So that's very interesting. And it's still a discussion we have. She react to things and I'm like, oh, okay, but I need to work more because it is a great, visually, a very interesting thing. It's surprising. It looks fresh. But what we want is to make it something that people will enjoy to wear. And it's where, you know, this is a constant dialogue together. So very, very important.
- [30:12]
Nicole Phelps
Yeah, I should have said at the beginning that Marie Emily is your longtime stylist. You have worked together.
- [30:18]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
But I'll show she's more than a stylist. We can say stylist, but she's her world, I would say, has expanded a lot. My world has expanded a lot for the last years. And she also expanded. She created the Map magazine Mastermind, who's a real reference now, and I should
- [30:36]
Nicole Phelps
also say one of the chicest women in fashion and beyond. Okay, we're going to take a quick break.
- [30:55]
Evan Osnos
We are in uncharted territory.
- [30:58]
David Remnick
Staff writer Evan Osnos on the New Yorker Radio Hour.
- [31:01]
Evan Osnos
I think all of us right now are trying to make sense of an avalanche of news every day. And there aren't very many places where you can go and understand how something looks in the grand scope of history and context. That's what I come to the New Yorker for.
- [31:15]
David Remnick
I'm David Remnick, and each week my colleagues and I try to make sense of what's happening in this chaotic world. And I hope you'll join us for the New Yorker Radio Hour.
- [31:25]
Molly Sims or Emma Sha Gormley
When I was younger, I always loved shopping at the mall. Going to justice limited to Hot Topic, we all remember that. And it was really easy, I felt, to find things that I wanted because I was going in person, I was trying things on, getting feedback from my friends. And right now I feel like I've been opting for doing more things online, which is always great, but I really miss those nostalgic moments. If it's a IRL experience that you are craving for shopping this season, Macy's is here to give you just that as you shop all summer long for your summer events. Got an event coming up. You can build your look head to toe, including accessories and shoes and walk Away with everything you need. Looking for the perfect summer glow. Peruse the beauty counters and consult our experts. Looking for a signature summer scent? Try on perfumes in store to find yours. So shop Macy's online or in store, which is what I recommend today.
- [32:29]
Nicole Phelps
I also want to talk about your influence. I mean, I've written about this for many, many years, but you are, you know, one of the most influential designers in fashion and a lot of designers have come up underneath you and now have, you know, have big jobs of their own. What is it? What does it feel like to. To sort of have. There's a sort of school of Nicolas Ghesquier, I think.
- [32:55]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Am I an example of longevity? Probably now because 16 years at Balenciaga and now, you know, 13 at LV and in that way I'm not a classic profile. I'm not really reflecting the way designers are staying in houses today. It seems like things are much shorter and they have less time. Time to succeed or to create their vocabulary. And that's something, you know, that is so important, to have time to express your aesthetic and to seduce your clients and to, yeah, set up that dialogue again. So that's something for me that sometimes I worry is the way designers, the relationship, it seems a little too disposable.
- [33:49]
Nicole Phelps
Yeah, I wanted to ask you about that. The sort of the fast paced, the in and out that seems to happen now at a lot of other places. Good for fashion, bad for fashion.
- [34:00]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Oh, bad. I think it's bad. It's destroying a part. It could destroy, you know, like visions or damage them and it could damage brand too. So I think a strong choice has to be, you know, made together. So that's what. But that's what I would really choose. Well, your partner. This is so important. Have your own style, of course, your own expression, your very individual vision, talent. There's so many people talented to find the right partners that will believe in you, that will stimulate you, that will put pressure, but not too much pressure. Not to say go too fast. No, just go. The tempo is everything. So it's what I believe in fashion. The tempo is everything. It's the right thing at the right moment. At the end of the day, it's what is seducing us when we see your great collection. And so when you are lucky, and I was lucky to meet people that were fantastic and that are fantastic partners that were essential to my personal development as a creator. And that's what I hope the talented designer that are expressing their creativity today have.
- [35:29]
Nicole Phelps
Well, let's change Gears a bit. Not that long ago you shared your new LA home with Vanity Fair, which is Vogue's sister publication. And I'd like to hear a little bit from you about your. Your sort of connection with architecture. Obviously you have chosen a lot of incredible buildings and locations over the years for your shows, but also Los Angeles in general. We have noticed that a lot of designers like la, especially a lot of French designers. What is it that allures you so?
- [36:07]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Well, I have a very personal collection my partner is born in. Well, no, he's born in Oklahoma, actually, but he grew up in San Diego. We met in la. And so my connection to Los Angeles is about love. You know, let's be honest, we live together. But why designers love la? I don't know. There is. It's true, there's a quality of architecture that is very interesting. It's eclectic, very eclectic. LA is such a weird, like place. You built your fantasy in every way. I guess it's the Hollywood effect and the entertainment effect. So it's not only about house, it's what goes with the house. It's the travel you do when you walk into someone's home and what it reflected. And I found the John Lautner house that I never thought I was going to find. A house that was such a jo. And so it was really like love at first sight. Of course, there is a form of freedom in the lifestyle. It's hard to explain, actually. What I believe is important for me is that you can isolate yourself and I need to be sometimes a little alone. And like fashion is a world when we are always in interaction. And it's wonderful, but it's intense. And the moment when you can be very private, very alone is very important. And LA gives that. LA gives social possibilities, a cultural possibilities. Very strong, actually. Entertainment also. But also you can really stay at home or somewhere and kind of, you know, stay in your bubble to think about collections, to be clear, you know, to design. I designed some collections in LA quicker than I would have done it in Paris, strangely, you know, with more focus, because it's a time capsule somehow.
- [38:20]
Nicole Phelps
What you just said is interesting that you sometimes design a collection in la. Talk about your design process. Does it. Does it appear to you in your head? Are you, you know, are you sketching it? Are you working on the model? Like, how does a collection come together for.
- [38:38]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
It's a little bit of everything. And that's what's exciting also about it. It's. The method exists in the way that we have to buy fabrics before and stuff or develop fabric. But in fact, no, you can start with anything. You can start with the fittings of something you developed the season before, and the shape was not correct or right at the time. But you think this is something that will inspire an entire collection. You can start with a piece of paper and drawing. You start with ecographic research, of course, with pictures of fashion fits fashion, but also architecture. We were talking, you know, I've designed collection. Thinking about a house again. You know, I see the collection like a scene in a movie or like a short film, and my role is, like, to make the artistic direction of that moment. And I see fashion shows like that, you know, that's why with lv, it was important to look for extraordinary location for the shows, because I really wanted to tell a short story every time we are doing a collection, especially with the crew. So it's the process. It's suddenly, I will see a place and I will be, oh, my God, this is so inspiring. And I want to do a collection like that. Or I would see Bella Baxter, Emma Stone in Poor Things and say, all right, this is such a bold and, like, crazy character. And she's so feminist in the same time and so strong. I want to see how I can express that in my fashion. It's very interesting. There's a lot. There's a lot. There's no form, in fact. And that's what makes it so, I think, exciting. I mean, did you notice how many. How much fashion is popular now? I mean, you know that it is. I mean, you. When. When I first started, it was popular, but it was not that popular. And it's very interesting to see that people are fascinated by fashion, but they can't really capture the way it's created, it's done. So there is a very beautiful mystery about that that I think is important to show.
- [40:59]
Nicole Phelps
I think we need a Nicolas Ghesquiere documentary so we can see how it's done.
- [41:08]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
One day.
- [41:09]
Nicole Phelps
One day. One day. One day. One day. But speaking about inspiration, you mentioned Poor Things, which was an incredible movie. Are there things that you've seen lately that have really turned you on? Could it be art or a movie? Music that you're really liking?
- [41:27]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Well, same. It's a collage, so I won't make a list. But what I love is to find the common points between this artist and this artist or things that, in my head, are connecting. So there is a lot of things. I have, to be honest. There is a big connection with the nature. I know it's very generic and very Universal. But I think the connection with. Yeah. How nature is the greatest artist and designer in the world. I mean, my March collection was about that. But I feel that, you know, we have to learn so much from digging into. And maybe it's because I became older too. You know, digging into history. History is so fascinating. So, yes, reading book about history. I don't know, it's just, it's. It's fascinating to go and explore the possibilities, the many possibilities that you find in nature. And that's something, for example, I'm a lot into. And of course, I mean, I can listen to music and see movies and stuff and see great movies. But there is something, I think, especially these days, we all need strong connection that are. I would call that like an instant satisfaction. Somehow we need to feel happy with things that are essential and very direct. And for me, it's what I wanted to express with the show in March. So it's that those connection through a big fashion show in Paris and the Courier Elite Louvre. But the message was that, well, I
- [43:04]
Nicole Phelps
know definitely when I go to la, the first thing I like to do is go for a hike in Runyon Canyon. Because, yes, as I've gotten older, I've learned to love nature a lot more too.
- [43:15]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Okay, I can take you to some that are really nice.
- [43:18]
Nicole Phelps
Yes. You have to tell me your secret moment. Please, please. Okay, we're going to take a quick break.
- [43:40]
Unidentified Guest or Commentator
If group chats had a podcast, it would sound exactly like this. Unfiltered beauty secrets, wellness trends we actually try. And the kind of real talk you won't find on Instagram or anywhere else. From celeb confessions to life's messy moments. Nothing's off limits. I'm Molly Sims, founder, actress, model, producer, and now your text or audio bff. And I'm Emma Sha Gormley. We are in this together, ladies. Join us every week for Lipstick on the Rim.
- [44:12]
Nicole Phelps
I wanted to mention Grace Coddington, who of course is a longtime Vogue editor. And you have a very close, close friendship with, with Grace. You've collaborated together at vton. She has said that you are one of the few designers who really advance fashion and push it forward. And, you know, other designers tend to follow. How do you manage that? And is it something that has gotten harder as you've gotten older or easier, would you say?
- [44:42]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Well, coming from Grace, this, this, this look, this comment on what I do is very, you know, it's a wonderful compliment. And I mean, she's extraordinary. She's also, as you say, a great friend. We get to Know each other on many crazy project. A lot of those projects, I mean, all the projects were with Vogue. And it's funny how, you know, we. We were put in very funny situation together. There is a story of the Natalia dress of Alice in Wonderland that now we've been saying a few times, but it's still so funny when you think about that, you know? And I don't know, I love how Grace is challenging also. You know, she is so demanding, and her expectations are super high, and she won't let go of, you know, if we start to design something for a special project with her that's gonna be. Grace is the only person that made, like, my office phone and my two cell phone rings in the same time. Like, literally, really, Like, I was like, how is she doing that? To ask for the color, the final color of this part of the dress. And I don't know. I think we share that with. We are precise. She's so precise. I mean, you can see in her work, in her books, She has this incredible romantic touch. I can say that there is a romanticism about Grace. And in the same time, she's so sharp, and it makes it so modern and contemporary on every picture she's collaborating with. And it's just like, you know, being on set with her. We shot a story not a long time ago for Vogue in Avignon, my last cruise. She stayed the day after the cruise, and I was on set with her and Emma Stone and Jamie Heckworthy with the photographer. I don't know. It was just a dream. Again, those moments are special. And it's hard to explain, in fact, because it's a few hours where nothing matter except producing an image that we want, that everyone wants to give the best of love and the best of imagination in it. And Grace, he's the chef d' orchestre of that. So, yeah, we've been playing together for a long time now, and it's precious to. To me, very precious. Yeah.
- [47:29]
Nicole Phelps
You have achieved and accomplished so much. So I'm curious to know what there's left that you want to do.
- [47:36]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
What?
- [47:37]
Nicole Phelps
Tell us.
- [47:38]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Yeah. Oh, well, no, I think fashion, the form of expression in fashion. The forms of expression in fashion as, like, expand so much, you know, and that there is a lot of, you know, there's a lot of things. It's related of, of course, to entertainment, but it's also tech. It's also, you know, I think it's very interesting to be. How can I say, an actor. We say in French, an actor of that moment. You have to contribute to that moment. So I think seeing fashion not only evolving, but transforming its expression is really inspiring for me. So where it's going to go, we don't always know, but. But how the reality and digital world will connect and are connecting. Where is our voice in that? What is the aesthetic that goes with that is the aesthetic of reality will impact the artificial or the digital aesthetic that is also appearing everywhere. So it's quite fascinating. It's a revolution. So that is something, you know, I'm very curious about, and I would love to contribute and participate to that and many other things. You know, I'm not an architect, but I love to contribute to that, to design objects and furniture, different craftsmanship. So, yeah, there's a lot of things to say. There's a lot of things, yeah.
- [49:11]
Nicole Phelps
All right, well, we'll be watching. Last question. As I've mentioned before, you are someone who. A lot of designers and, you know, people who are starting out look up to, as, you know, like I said, achieved so much. So what advice would you give to young people who want to break into fashion, who want to land a big, big job in fashion?
- [49:37]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Well, it's. I remember that Jean Paul Gaultier once said, and Jean Paul is a reference for me because I started in his studio when I was 18 and he gave me my first job and as an assistant. And Jean Paul, when he was asked about, you know, like, getting, you know, more mature and everything, he was like that. People shouldn't forget that at his position, at his age, he was once a young designer. And that. What matter is that longevity? It's this. It's this focus. It's the body of work. We would say. You know, it's hard when you, say, start to project yourself in 15, 20 years and think how you will be. But this is very important to do today because it's the development of your brand. If it's your brand or your talent, if you work for a house or the categories of product and design that you would prefer more bags or every. It could be everything, but, like, really put things in order. It's. It's not very sexy to. To say this, this way, but be pragmatic. The art form, you have it. If you want to do that, you can express it, the talent, but you have to be pragmatic and very organized in putting your ideas in the world. And that's, for me, very, very important. And be surrounded by the right people, connect with people you're trusting and that you have a feeling that you can share a very very long way, a long journey with. So that's for me seems very important when you start here.
- [51:26]
Nicole Phelps
Well, Nicolas, thank you very much for joining us at this busy time for you.
- [51:31]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Thank you.
- [51:32]
Nicole Phelps
We're looking forward to the show.
- [51:33]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
It was a pleasure, very much.
- [51:35]
Nicole Phelps
Thank you.
- [51:36]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
Thank you. The run through with vogue is produced
- [51:47]
Elizabeth Day
by chelsea daniel, alex depalma and alex john burns with help from emily elias.
- [51:52]
Nicolas Ghesquiere
The show is engineered by bran bandy and mixed by mike kutchman.
- [51:57]
Molly Sims or Emma Sha Gormley
Bye.
- [52:06]
Elizabeth Day
Hello, I'm Elizabeth Day, the creator and host of how to Fail. It's the podcast that celebrates the things in life that haven't gone right right and what, if anything, we've learned from those mistakes to help us succeed better. Each week, my guests share three failures sparking intimate, thought provoking and funny conversations. You'll hear from a diverse range of voices sharing what they've learned through their failures. Join me Wednesdays for a new episode each week. This is an Elizabeth Day and Sony Music Entertainment original podcast. Listen now wherever you get your podcasts
- [52:39]
Unidentified Guest or Commentator
from.
- [52:39]
Nicole Phelps
PRX.