Jean Paul Gaultier is retired, long live Jean Paul Gaultier. If the great nautical style designer no longer directs the creative reins of his maison, it is better to entrust them to younger talents. After Chitose Abe (Sacai), Glenn Martens (Y/Project and Diesel), Olivier Rousteing (Balmain), Haider Ackermann, Julien Dossena (Rabanne) and Simone Rocha, it is the turn of Nicolas Di Felice to reinterpret the codes of Jean Paul Gaultier for a fashion show of high fashion which will be presented in June 2024.
Who is Nicolas Di Felice, the next artistic director to helm a Jean Paul Gaultier haute couture collection?
If the surname suggests his Italian origins, Nicolas Di Felice was born in 1983 in Belgium and raised there, training at the La Cambre art school in Brussels. He joined Balenciaga in 2008 (Nicolas Ghesquière era who left the house in 2012) until 2014. He then worked for a few months as a tailor at Dior (Raf Simons era), before joining his first mentor Nicolas Ghesquière at his arrival from Louis. Vuitton in 2014. Nicolas Di Felice remained there for five years before becoming artistic director of Courrèges in 2020. Since then, he has launched critically acclaimed collections, while enjoying some commercial success, and also offers popular perfumes (Hyper Cuir, Hyper Musc and Hyper Oud launched late 2023). His taste for music also leads him to create private parties, but also a record shop.
But how will Jean Paul Gaultier appear through the prism of Nicolas Di Felice? We can certainly expect careful tailoring like the Italian-Belgian does so well, lots of vinyl, leather and silver, at the service of minimalist and sensual pieces. He is also the creator of gestures such as motorcycle jackets that are very rigid but which you can wear like a cape to use your smartphone without feeling constrained by the sleeves. Or even a pubic pocket that invites you to always stay connected to your privacy. Perhaps he will still manage to surprise with a new stylistic maneuver. Answered in June 2024 on Nicolas Di Felice’s Jean Paul Gaultier haute couture show.
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Source: Madmoizelle
Mary Crossley is an author at “The Fashion Vibes”. She is a seasoned journalist who is dedicated to delivering the latest news to her readers. With a keen sense of what’s important, Mary covers a wide range of topics, from politics to lifestyle and everything in between.
