Promising young designer, Charles de Vilmorin, 23, launched his eponymous ready-to-wear brand at the end of April 2020 during the first lockdown. At the tender age of ten he started designing dresses for his little sister which he covered with bouquets of flowers.
His first internship came during college where he worked at Lanvin, alongside the late, great couturier, Alber Elbaz. During his time at the esteemed French fashion college, Ecole de la Chambre Syndicale de la Couture, he was a model. He fits into fashion, his lifelong passion, and fashion fits him. He even looks like a young version of Yves Saint Laurent.
Although no stranger to the podium, Charles reveals he felt more at home backstage – or behind the camera since he intends to continue photographing his work. He has become an expert in the new fantasy novel of fashion: in a universe paralyzed by the end of the great carnival, he is being hailed as a much-needed heroic fantasy character to re-enchant Instagram with his bewitching appearances.
His signatures include exuberance, panache, oversized shoulders, hearts and supernatural flowers drawn or sewn in patchwork. He loves colour. His work is charged and poetic. A cross between Niki de Saint Phalle on acid and Kansai Yamamoto, the legendary Japanese fashion designer of the 1970s, great masters Jean-Charles de Castelbajac and Christian Lacroix have both shown interest in the young apprentice.
“My inspirations are above all my relatives, my friends and their strong personalities.” His great aunt is none other than the writer and scriptwriter, Louise de Vilmorin, noted for her various love affairs with Antoine de Saint-Exupery and Orson Welles; and for writing the novel, Madamede. She is also known for her famous blue salon in the castle of Verrières-le-Buisson where she welcomed great intellectuals of her time.
Other inspirations include social movements and music which he claims helps him “to create”. He goes on, “it [music] immerses me in a universe of colors and movement….clothing reflects the time in which it is anchored, its codes, its debates, its discoveries and, without it, society and its evolution fashion would have no interest.”
The designer – who loves the work of painters including Chagall, Klimt and Odilon Redon – designs his pieces from his workshop in Paris’ 17th arrondissement. Here he paints directly onto fabric, patchwork or uses print. “For jackets, we use waterproof polyester, four layers of fleece and ribbed edge in mesh,” he continues. The polyester is printed by hand. The volume of the jackets is created thanks to a fairly meticulous topstitching work that gives relief to the pattern.
“The volume, the amplification of the shoulders, the dramatization of the silhouette, are the signature of this collection, designed to assert itself.” He describes his work as “curiously easy to wear despite its strong identity.” Adding, “the prototypes of my parts are made in a very instinctive and spontaneous way.” When he has an idea he reveals the piece can be created overnight.
To promote responsible manufacturing, Charles de Vilmorin’s range is to be sold on a first-come, first-served basis. When it first hit the fashion scene, like a comet coming out of the darkness, his life changed in a matter of months. Three weeks after presenting his first haute couture collection of eleven hand-painted dresses, de Vilmorin generated another sensation by accepting the position of new artistic director of the house Rochas. “I am extremely honored tojoin Maison Rochas as Artistic Director,” he announced on social media adding his first collection will be for summer 2022. He has claimed that Rochas occupies a special place in his heart as much because of his French family roots as its rich and inspiring heritage. We can expect the young designer to bring a delicate touch and reinterpret the codes of the house. Philippe Benacin, CEO of Interparfums (the luxury group that owns Rochas), said in a statement, “audacity, elegance, timelessness is the universe of Rochas and we are delighted that Charles can contribute to therenewal of our brand.”
He succeeds Alessandro Dell’Acqua, who has at the helm since 2013 and left the brand in 2019.
Charles’s youth, talent and yes, a touch of madness will bring perfect harmony to Rochas and breath new life for years to come.
It’s interesting to learn the pandemic has not stopped support for young fashion designers. Quite the contrary. This year, the eighth year of the LMVH Award for Emerging Talent attracted more than 1,900 candidates from around the world. All these dream of winning this prestigious international award, which has already launched careers of now established designers such as Marine Serre and Thebe Magugu, along with a prize sum of 300,000 euros in endowments, as well as a year of mentoring by a team from the LVMH group.
As one of the semi-finalists of the award himself, Charles de Vilmorin, won with his baroque and sculptural creations. Delphine Arnault declares: “I am very grateful to all the candidates from more than 110 countries for taking part in this year’s competition and I would like to congratulate the semi-finalists.”
Social networks have played an especially prominent issue during this period. It is worth noting @charlesdevilmorin is followed by more than 60 thousand people and through him, Generation Z share his life not only his fashion news. Importantly, he also launched his collection via Instagram.
De Vilmorin has also won the approval of the filmmaker and familiar face on the Paris Fashion Week, Loic Prigent, who visited his apartment in the 17th arrondissement for inclusion in his latest program, “52 Moments of Fashion”. This is the show the current generation are using to communicate, share and translate fashion happenings. No one understands this better than de Vilmorin who mixes personal and professional life, with his life as an artist along with marketing his pieces.
His codes are also marked by the aesthetics of a childhood spent in houses with flowery and colorful decors. However, far from looking back towards the past, the gaze of Charles de Vilmorin remains that of a young man hungry for his own time which is very much anchored in the present. One of his major sources of fashion inspiration continues to be social and societal movements. He’s of his time. And it’s looking clear Charles has all the advantages of being the first fashion star of the 21st century ‘Z generation’.
