36 posts tagged "Nicola Formichetti"
Jazz Hands! Mugler Takes The Stage
Thierry (or, as he’s now called, Manfred) Mugler has found the perfect stage on which to reinvent himself—a literal one. This winter, the eighties legend, who returned to his namesake label as creative adviser after Nicola Formichetti’s departure in April, will open Mugler Follies, a full-throttle revue (i.e., variety show) that, as his Web site muglerfollies.com details, will consist of acrobats, actors, models, singers, eroticism, technology, lots of lights, original songs, and beyond. Set to open in December at Paris’ Théâtre Comédia, the show, which guests can enjoy over dinner, or champagne, will undoubtedly be packed with dramatics and razzle-dazzle. But what has us most excited are the costumes: Judging by the site’s illustrations, the wardrobe is a sexed-up space-age Mugler fantasy at its best.
Diesel, Now Unleaded: Nicola Formichetti On His Expansion Plans
“We’re celebrating here!” said Nicola Formichetti, by phone from Diesel’s headquarters in Italy this morning. The reason: The announcement was made today that Formichetti, as was much-rumored when he left his creative director post at Mugler this week, is joining Diesel as its first artistic director. “Mugler was all about creating luxury, and fantasy, and bringing the dream and the entertainment into an already existing brand,” Formichetti said. “At Diesel, I want to talk straight into people’s hearts, people in the street.” Here, Formichetti lays out his plans to put Diesel denim back on the map.
Congratulations.
Thank you so much. Actually, I’m presenting my first project today. It’s our initiative of the Reboot Campaign. It’s the advertisements, starting from June. So it’s the visual side, and we’re going to start a big digital community on Tumblr first. And I want to crowd-source using social media and start getting the armies together, because I can’t do this alone. We need lots of people’s help, and it’ll be a great way to meet new talent and designers and artists. Because Diesel’s such a global brand; the team should be global, too.
Tell me more about the Reboot project.
You can actually go to the Diesel Reboot page. You can just go there, and I’ve already reblogged some of the stuff I liked online. We go in, and you guys can join the community and tell us who you are and what you like. And we’re going to have little missions, so for the first mission, we’ll ask, “What’s your favorite thing?” And another mission would be, “How would you like to see this change?” Or “How would you customize this denim?” And then we’ll give an award per mission. So you’ll get something back. It’s kind of like a dialogue. It’s a new way of using social media, and I’m super excited for that.
What, exactly, does “artistic director” mean? What will your role at Diesel entail?
I’ll be directing the collection. So I’ll look at the entire company—from the clothing to the products, the shows, the marketing, the store experiences, the advertising. All the details. It’s so crazy.
What most interests you about the company?
Well, I love that if you have a great product, and if you have great communication, you can actually get to people. Because that really didn’t happen with me at Mugler. I wasn’t seeing a cool guy wearing my clothes on the street. Yes, Gaga wore it. Beyoncé wore it. But what I wanted was to see someone—like, a cool girl—wearing my jackets or pants on the street randomly. Continue Reading “Diesel, Now Unleaded: Nicola Formichetti On His Expansion Plans” »
Nicola Formichetti to Diesel
After two days of rumors following Nicola Formichetti’s departure from Mugler this week, WWD now confirms that the stylist has been named Diesel’s first artistic director. According to Diesel founder Renzo Rosso, Formichetti—who noted that he’s got a lot of “crazy ideas” for the label—will be responsible for a “total view” of the Diesel brand. His impact will first be seen in the Fall 2013 season. “I finally met somebody as crazy as I am,” Rosso told WWD. “I have replaced myself and can go on vacation.”
Mugler, Formichetti To Split
Mugler, which returned to the runway two years ago under the creative direction of mega-stylist Nicola Formichetti (above left, with designer Sébastien Peigné), will part ways with him, WWD reported today. The label called the creative director “a historical part of the Mugler legacy” and praised him as “the force that catapulted us forward”; no word from the man himself, who, according to the paper, is on vacation.
Hood By Air’s Zombie Walk
New York’s own Hood By Air bills itself as “ghetto goth.” That’s a niche market if we’ve ever seen one. But in spite (or perhaps because) of its cult appeal, HBA can certainly draw a crowd. Theophilus London, Nicola Formichetti, and his two Pomeranians, Tank and Bambi, were in the front row at the label’s Fall ’13 show at Milk Studios yesterday afternoon. The theme was techno-tribal-street-zombie—a concept that was magnified by performance artist Boy Child, who would sporadically interrupt the catwalking by creeping through a cloud of smoke and contorting his body into morbid positions.
Designer Shayne Oliver moved away from his usual all-black palette this season with splashes of yellow, blue, and X-ray green. “Before, I enjoyed black because I thought it looked the best,” Oliver told Style.com, “Now I’m learning how to express that darkness without actually doing black.” This collection is also markedly more complex than what we’ve seen on the racks in previous seasons. Sweatshirts are done in oversize neoprene to distort the body, Bermudas are slit open and worn over skinny pants, and zippers transform one garment into something else entirely, like a pair of loose shorts into a kilt. It’s an aesthetic that really appealed to A$AP Rocky, whom Oliver enlisted to close the show. “Growing up in Harlem, hanging out in Soho, I had to deal with the transition between different worlds. Shayne’s stuff is totally something I can get with.” Thanks to A$AP, HBA’s niche might soon get a little bit bigger—Oliver will be dressing the rapper as he opens for Rihanna on her world tour this spring.