The Poet

July 1st, 2010

Kris Van Assche waxes lyrical about his creative vision for Dior Homme

Images ioulex Styling Nicholas Galletti Interview Elisabeth Fourmont

In 2007, Kris Van Assche was charged with the daunting task of replacing Hedi Slimane, the man who exploded the conservative world of men’s fashion during his influential seven-year reign at Dior Homme. Van Assche (who worked at Slimane’s side throughout most of his time at Dior, and before that, for two years at YSL) met the challenge by reversing almost everything Slimane was known for.

As he upended the skinny, pulsing, rock and roll look of his predecessor, it soon became clear that the most defining characteristic of Van Assche’s work was its resistance to conforming to any predictable category. His clothes are at once meticulous and deconstructed, historical and modern, his customer neither too conservative nor too dandy, his models’ physiques neither too muscular nor too skinny. He is a neoclassicist, a hunter of poetic elegance, a man who prefers realistic fashion to radical extremism. He is someone who equally loves what is chic and what is sadly beautiful – both clowns and the elderly have been cited as inspirations.

After three years heading Dior Homme, and five years of running his eponymous line, we took stock with Van Assche, discussing the embellishment of the everyday, fashion’s craving for constant renewal, and the possibility of poetry to cure a world that is too loud and crowded with images.

Elisabeth Fourmont: Your contract with Dior Homme was recently renewed, and earlier this year you were named the number one men’s designer by the Journal du Textile. What have these last few years been like since taking the helm at Dior Homme?
Kris Van Assche: Nobody thought it was going to be easy, and it wasn’t. Those were big shoes to fill! But I definitely feel I am getting there. I definitely found my personal vision for the brand, and people do seem to like the direction the brand has been taking. A lot has happened over the last three years, not only on the inside for Dior Homme, but also for fashion and the world in general. So it took some time and courage to define the right tone for Dior.

EF: There was a witty line in American GQ about your F/W 2010 collection for Dior Homme. They wrote, “[Dior is] still very cutting-edge – just no longer cut so close.” Working with Hedi Slimane, you helped create the super skinny look that the brand was known for during his regime. How did you evolve the Dior style after the departure of Slimane?
KVA: The slim and sharp silhouette is always of the moment. This look marked a turning point in men’s fashion, which had been stuck in a rut of boring conservatism. But as the “skinny” silhouette has moved down onto the street, it’s up to us to offer something new. Fashion exists to be constantly renewed. In any case, I’ve never had a strong calling just to dress skinny adolescents. More than anything I want to dress men, whatever their age, who have allure and a certain frame. It’s from this that the Dior Homme style has evolved towards more subtle cuts, complex volumes, and unexpected pairings. The body must be freer, comfort the first rule, and there must be elegance in the soft movement.

EF: Can you tell us about your inspirations for the F/W 2010 collections, for both your eponymous line and for Dior Homme?
KVA: For Dior Homme, since summer, I have been rewriting the story of the “little black suit” which has become such a pillar of the male wardrobe. I shook it up, wrapped it in beautiful oversized trenches, removed it from its safety zone by pairing it with exaggerated volumes. The first idea was one of military coats, usually heavy and stiff, all but comfortable. I wanted to loosen them up, as I had started doing with the suits for summer. It’s a collection that aims toward a new kind of contemporary luxury, comfortable, with exceptional materials and precise silhouettes. For my Kris Van Assche line I wanted to revisit the fundamentals of the brand: soft and urban suits, cargo pants, and check shirts. It’s a pure, pared-down, subtle, and sober collection. It expresses the line’s identity with a lot of simplicity and strength. I like the idea of hybrid clothing: nothing is entirely classic nor sporty. It’s all about contemporary “real life” clothes.

EF: Your universe is extremely coherent. How did you come to develop your aesthetic? Looking back at what you were designing at the Académie Royale in Antwerp during your school years, does the thread follow through to what you are doing today?
KVA: The Royal Academy in Antwerp is a school based on discipline and creativity. It leaves a major mark and, in hindsight, I feel very indebted to this teaching. The Belgian school isn’t a myth, it exists and stands for a vision of fashion that corresponds to me totally. It’s fashion that’s long-term, independent, sober, and creative, avoiding caricature and precious details. Still today, my work is a reflection of that state of mind that I meld with what’s dubbed “Parisian chic.” This highly fertile interaction allows me to overturn the classics, and to invent a new elegance.

EF: Your models have a very particular look, a bit more athletic than many male models, but not overly-sculpted. You find many of them in places like Argentina and Brazil, correct? What is it that you are looking for in a model?
KVA: Balance, a look, a personality. I’m not systematically drawn to the top stunning guys, I prefer to create a casting that really reflects the spirit of the collection. The boys I choose look like young men, not adolescents. My clothes require a balanced body, with shoulders and a well-carried head. The general sense of coherence is more important than the colour of their hair or skin. However, when it comes to my castings, I’ve left South America behind in favour of Russia. I don’t have any go-to country, I’m open to all types of physiques. And in a way it is important to change directions from time to time, just to keep a fresh eye. I guess it is a constant search for the right balance of modernity and elegance.

EF: I read in another interview that you are inspired by the chicness of elderly people. That combination of care for how they look, and the disconnect in the way they mix pieces from different time periods, so that everything is pleasingly a bit off. How do those particular qualities that you like in elderly people translate into your work?
KVA: Paying attention to one’s look without being precious about it. Certain older people have been known to keep this extreme sense of elegance, one that’s detailed and precise but which owes nothing to the female wardrobe. It’s a type of un-neglected masculinity, that of a man who takes care to look good. This mindset is essential to me, as it melds masculinity and sophistication.

EF: Could you speak a bit about your grandmother and how she influences you?
KVA: She showed me how to embellish the everyday, that poetry was everywhere. The fact that a little extra effort makes all the difference. She is the definition of aesthetic living.

EF: You’ve lived in Paris for over a decade now. What neighbourhoods inspire you here?
KVA: I don’t really feel inspired by Paris as a city… I get inspired by personalities, but they can live anywhere.

EF: We loved your Kris Van Assche collection for women. Can you tell us a bit about the choice to suspend the line?
KVA: At the Academy in Antwerp I only did women’s collections. As a result, when I set up my own Kris Van Assche brand, it was always my intention to develop a women’s line in parallel with the men’s. The only thing I’m lacking is enough time to do it the way I want to. It’s on hold, and I will get around to organizing myself properly to get it going again. It’s only a matter of time.

EF: Each year you put forth four collections: two for Dior Homme and two for your own men’s line. How do you reconcile the time it takes to prepare these different collections?
KVA: It’s an unstoppable machine with an organization that seeks to avoid any unpleasant surprises. My teams are the essential backbone. Also, I am quite obsessive about organization… I hate being late and I don’t like people who are. I do not function under last minute pressure like some people do. After a show, I do take some days off, but never really long, and usually I try to combine rest and research. I like the idea of using as much time as I can in between shows to develop ideas. This discipline allows me to stay relatively calm under pressure.

EF: Can you tell us a bit about your “Poète en Grève” exposition in Paris last fall? Do you see yourself as a poet of the quotidian? This may sound a bit heavy, but what do you think is the role of poets in our society today?
KVA: I’m not a poet in the strict sense of the term, but I’m searching for beauty in my own way. This installation reflected my most profound questioning, and my worries about the deaf and blind world in which we live. Poetry today must be preserved. Not only in books and through the words of poets, but also inside those who create and who desire freedom of expression. In this sense I guess I’m a hunter of the poetic.