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FASHIONING THE EROS
AFTER A LONGSTANDING CAREER IN THE FASHION INDUSTRY, FILIP ARICKX SHOCKED HIS FAMILY AND FRIENDS WITH HIS NEW ENDEAVOUR: SEX TOYS. BUT FOR THE SEASONED DESIGNER, THE MOVE WAS NATURAL. AFTER ALL, FOR 23 YEARS, ARICKX AND HIS WIFE, AN VANDEVORST, MADE SEX WEARABLE. THROUGH HIS NEW BRAND, THE BELGIAN DESIGNER EXPLORES UNCHARTED TERRITORIES. IF IN A.F. VANDEVORST ARICKX SUBVERTED THE EROTIC, IN NIGHTFALL, HE EXPLORES SEXUALITY BALLS TO THE WALL - THE BRAND IS A SOPHISTICATED CELEBRATION OF SENSUALITY. ORCHIDS TRAPPED IN CLEAR TOYS, PLUGS MADE OF CRYSTAL: NIGHTFALL FASHIONS BEAUTY AS A SYNONYM FOR THE EROTIC. SEX IS ELEVATED AS A LUXURIOUS ART FORM. AFTER ALL, AS ARICKX POINTS OUT, WHY SHOULDN’T YOU BE ABLE TO PURCHASE A SEX TOY ON THE CHAMPS-ÉLYSÉES AS YOU DO ANY OTHER LUXURY ITEM? WE CAUGHT UP WITH THE DESIGNER TO DELVE DEEP INTO HIS NEW PROJECT, THE EXCITEMENT OF STARTING OVER AND OVERCOMING SEX TOY SHAME.
Image by Ferry van der Nat
You have had such a long and fruitful career in fashion, what made you pivot into the erotic market?
For 23 years, my wife and I were involved in the fashion industry. We started around 1997, in an era where fashion had the power to tell stories, create, and invite people into its atmosphere. That was what we most loved about the industry. Every time we would stage a show, it was more than just a straight-up runway up and down, we were creating performances. At one point, people lost interest in storytelling, especially from independent fashion houses. And so, because we were smaller, everything was starting to be product-oriented, and to be honest, that’s never what we wanted to do. At one point, we realized that if we can’t change the industry then let us exit gracefully. So, in 2019, we started to inform our staff, our manufacturers, and, eventually, in February 2020, the press. We opened our archives to museums all over the world to purchase the most important runway looks. To end it all, we threw an amazing party on the 28th of February in Paris. One week later, Covid hit, and everything shut down.
How do you think erotic toys can be used as a vehicle for storytelling?
Well, I think their position on the margins is always interesting, you can usually only find them in seedy places, like sex shops. I thought, well, why not bring them into the luxury market? By making them beautiful we can discuss them in entirely different contexts. Why couldn’t you buy a sex toy in a designer store? We want to start collaborating with different brands to allow them to infuse their DNA. Imagine how thrilling it would be to buy a vibrator in a luxurious flagship store. If it’s beautiful and high quality, why should that be wrong? Sex toys are given an unfair connotation. Has a war ever started over a sex toy? To answer your question, can you tell a story through sex toys? I can make up a thousand.
Do you think the lack of beauty in sex toys is representative of the shame people feel over them?
That’s what I mean when I say beauty connects. If something is beautiful, people feel almost obligated to talk about it, something is compelling about it. Instead of having something that looks like a penis, which leaves no room for fantasy, why not offer something immersive? Why should the experience start when using it? Why would the act of opening beautiful packaging and looking at an elegant design not be part of the erotic experience?
Do you think there’s a through line between the way you approach fashion and erotic toys?
When I announced to friends of mine that I had been working on developing sex toys, they were confused at first. But what I explained to them is that it was quite natural, A.F. [Vandevorst] was always inspired by eroticism, fetishism, and sometimes even Shibari. It’s something that can be so beautiful without being marginal, that notion inspired our work. To me, it didn’t feel like a huge leap, from fashion to eroticism. With 23 years of fashion behind me, I am qualified to connect eros and fashion. Even if other sex toy brands try to do something fashionable, they don’t come from the same background.
When did you have the realization that you were the ideal person to bridge the gap between eroticism and luxury?
Before the lockdown, we had a series of offers on the table that, because of the pandemic, all fell through. My wife and I started thinking about second choices. An always wanted to do something with music and video, so she’s DJing right now, while also being in Florence because she’s the Head of Design at Polimoda. She kept asking me what I wanted to do, and when I said that I wanted to do something in eroticism she said, “Oh, you’re crazy.” I just replied, “No, no, just watch me, I will explain later.” After three months, she asked me to join the project, but I felt like I wanted to do something on my own after 23 years. So, together with a business partner, I slowly started to find investors and built it from the ground up.
Nightfall’s designs are so unlike anything I've ever seen when it comes to sex toys, what was your biggest inspiration?
When I started to design, I just thought, “What’s important in a sex toy for me?” When I first showed them to An, she liked them immediately but remarked that she still doesn’t want them to be touched by other people. That’s when I started thinking about how the toy’s packaging could be part of its aesthetic. I thought back to when I was young, we had smuggler books, hollow books so you could put cigarettes without your parents knowing - I just transported that idea over.
It’s not just the box - besides the sex toy inside, there’s an interesting erotic zine. Why did you decide to include this publication?
I want Nightfall to be a sort of platform that connects pleasure with other disciplines. A sort of book would be ideal for that because people enjoy imagery to evoke imagination. I contacted some photographers and gave them all vague directions, I wanted to see where they would take it.
It’s a great idea to make it a collaborative effort, to make sure the brand is always being pushed out of its limits. Why do you think it took so long for someone to think of something like Nightfall?
I don’t know, it seems very logical to me. I think maybe some are scared to go in that direction. There have been designers who made toys before, like Sonia Rykiel or Walter Van Beirendonck but I wanted to create a whole story. Something that could be a part of my legacy.
You’ve mentioned that you believe Nightfall can rewrite the narrative around sex toys, how do you think you’re achieving this goal?
There’s this illusion that it’s a last resort for lonely people but I think sex toys can be your best friend even if you have a partner, it can be perfect to enhance your pleasure as a couple and to give another dimension to your intimate life. By refusing to look at eroticism as something shameful, we open discussions on how to enjoy sex. It adds depth and value to conversations we should be having with our sexual partners.
You referenced your desire to have designer collaborations, with what kind of people or brands would you like to work with?
I hesitate to give names; I don’t want to jinx anything. [Laughs] But I think of people like Martin Margiela or Helmut Lang. Designers that make sexiness into something complex. When Margiela had his first show, I was a student still and I was dressing models backstage. At that moment, I recognized that sexuality had a concept to it. He introduced to me a kind of sexy woman or man that I had never seen.
How do you think Nightfall will evolve?
I envision Nightfall as a universe, a platform where photography, movies, magazines, and all other disciplines come together and create a world built on love, respect and joy.
Interview by Pedro Vasconcelos
JOURNEY INTO THE CRAFTED WORLD
LOEWE HAS FASHIONED A SPHERE OF INTRICATE REFERENCES AND UNIQUE AESTHETICS THROUGHOUT ITS EXISTENCE. NOW, THE SPANISH LUXURY HOUSE EXTENDS AN INVITATION TO ITS UNIVERSE.
A few months after celebrating the 10th anniversary of Jonathan Anderson’s tenure at Loewe, the house presents an exhibition dedicated to the world it cultivates. Despite not being the first brand to create an exposition devoted to its history, “Loewe Crafted World” stands apart from its predecessors. Far from being immersive propaganda, the retrospective, currently showcased at the Shanghai Exhibition Centre, is anchored in Loewe’s DNA, reflecting its undeniable ties to art, craft, and an idiosyncratic sense of fun.
A Loewe exhibit is more than expected, it's natural for a brand that is so closely aligned with the art world. Every season, Anderson collaborates with an artist as a starting point for his whimsical shows. Plus, the Northern Irish designer already has experience in curating - just last fall, Anderson oversaw “On Foot” at London’s Offer Waterman Gallery. This background feels present at the Loewe exhibit, masterfully blending the brand’s history, the depth of Anderson’s design, and its array of references.
Loewe’s 178-year history is condensed into six chapters, exploring its cerebral, yet compelling approach to fashion. From a room dedicated to its Spanish roots to the recent renaissance at the hands of Anderson, the creative director calls it “a homage to all the craftspeople around the world that have dedicated their lives to the handmade.” The tribute isn’t implied, it’s made clear through the brand’s commitment to preserving techniques and crafts that span centuries, perfectly illustrated in “Loewe Craft World”.
But it's not all seriousness. Loewe’s ability to juxtapose its longstanding legacy with a childlike playfulness is at the core of its undeniable success. Over its 1,600 square meters, the exhibit displays that dichotomy. Between Picasso porcelains and Beyoncé stage outfits, there’s plenty of time for suspended flower gardens or a pronunciation tunnel that squashes all remaining doubts on how to pronounce Loewe (the brand clarifies, it’s “LO-EV-EH”).
Even in the heart of China, the Spanish mission doesn’t feel foreign. After all, Loewe was one of the first luxury brands to invest in the Chinese market. Its first store in mainland China dates back to 2011 - a fact highlighted in the exhibition. Nonetheless, there’s no need to book a trip just to see the exhibit; after the 5th of May, “Loewe Craft World” is set to travel the world.
Words by Pedro Vasconcelos
UTOPIC ADOLESCENCE
Throughout his illustrious career in the fashion industry, Hedi Slimane has proven time and time again that he’s a master of creating a complete, multi-layered vision for the historic houses that he’s at the helm of. Building upon his signature aesthetic of immaculate tailoring and the mischievous attitude of rock’n’roll, the French creative director’s conceptualization process spans fashion, architecture, beauty, art, music and film.
This ethos is very much present in Slimane’s work at the Parisian house of Celine. Since starting in 2018, he’s reworked the brand’s look by giving a modern take on the codes established by its founder, Céline Vipiana, who began designing womenswear in the 1960s. Now, this era in fashion and culture has become a source of inspiration for Celine’s latest scent from their Haute Parfumerie collection – Zouzou.
With its notes of benzoin, tonka bean, patchouli, labdanum, vanillin and musk, the perfume is a fantasy on the carefree and joyous attitude of the decade. Its name comes from an epithet popular at the time used to describe young girls with short hair. Inspired by the heroines of the era – French writer Françoise Sagan and gamine film star, Jean Seberg – Zouzou is an ode to eternal youth. The alluring sense of utopic adolescence is further evoked in the scent’s campaign shot by Slimane – starring one of the house’s muses, actress and musician Esther-Rose McGregor.
Words by Martin Onufrowicz
ON BELONGING
In his first solo show Vandals, Winter Vandenbrink explores the idea of belonging, examining the relationship between the youth and their daily environments. Titled after a 1945 text by German philosopher Theodor W. Adorno, a work which has a leading influence on the Dutch photographer’s artistic practice, the exhibition delves into the impact that rising consumerism and mass culture have on individuality.
Showcased at the Von Der Hoeden Contemporary gallery in Hamburg, the 13 unique works display a candid look into the youth subcultures of the modern European metropolises. The subjects, mostly unaware of being photographed, are captured during their daily hangouts in the urban landscape – linking up in the public spaces of their cities to chat, skate and perhaps cause a little bit of trouble.
The raw photographs bring the role of fashion in shaping these communities to the forefront. Through wearing instantly recognisable garments from mega sports corporations like Adidas and Nike or brands like Calvin Klein, adolescents are able to effectively express their desire to belong to a specific group. Vandenbrink’s evocative images act as a vocabulary, introducing the viewers to the visual language that connects his subjects and inviting them to question the concept of authenticity in the contemporary world.
Vandals by Winter Vandenbrink is on view at Von Der Hoeden Contemporary in Hamburg from April 19 to May 23.
Words by Martin Onufrowicz
LDSS FW24 BACKSTAGE
Fall/Winter 2024 brings Ludovic de Saint Sernin to New York City, where the brand presents its first runway show outside of Paris. A toast to one of the city’s most emblematic artists, the runway becomes a forum for the exploration of the fertile common ground between the work of Robert Mapplethorpe and the label’s founder. Charting a journey from seeming innocence to dark eroticism, the collection ponders the delicate tension between the two. As Mapplethorpe famously remarked of his flower photographs:
“Beauty and the devil are the same thing.”
Photography by Wojciech Christopher Nowak
SAINT LAURENT BABYLONE
SAINT LAURENT BABYLONE, opens its doors at 9 rue de Grenelle in the 7th arrondissement of Paris. The name Saint Laurent Babylone refers to the historical ties of Yves Saint Laurent and Pierre Bergé to the Sèvres-Babylone neighborhood. SAINT LAURENT BABYLONE is a new cultural destination and bookstore in the heart of Paris, dedicated to art, culture and new modes of expression.
Created by Saint Laurent Creative Director Anthony Vaccarello, this new incarnation of the SAINT LAURENT RIVE DROITE offers a diverse and globe-spanning collection of books, art, and music, as well as a new genre of cultural space. SAINT LAURENT BABYLONE is a gathering place in the heart of Paris for artistic innovators where connections and ideas can be born. More than a traditional bookstore, the space offers an unparalleled collection of books, art and music. lt is also a new destination for cultural events, from DJ sessions to author readings and signings. Each item in SAINT LAURENT BABYLONE, from rare books to SLRD Editions or subversive publications and out-of-print musical recordings or original productions, has been curated by Anthony Vaccarello.
Anthony Vaccarello's extensive and diversified offer in different areas of culture and design allows him to imagine and adopt new ways of extending the Saint Laurent universe and DNA.
ENDLESS SUMMER MIU MIU SS24 CAMPAIGN
The Miu Miu Spring/Summer 2024 campaign features a diverse cast including May Andersen, Emma Corrin, Angel Haze, Lexie Liu, Demi Singleton, and Cailee Spaeny. The visuals showcase a disheveled chic, with bold and simple portraits capturing a vivid sense of beauty in a hard-to-define space illuminated by the Los Angeles sun. The multi-disciplinary cast, including actors, singers, and models, is depicted in motion with overflowing bags, creating an ambiguous narrative of leaving or returning home. The campaign embraces a prototypical wardrobe, blending swimwear, sportswear, evening wear, and various textures like lightweight wool and cotton drill tailoring. Materials are treated to evoke vintage finds, emphasizing the value of history and memories in fashion. The irreverent yet knowledgeable style incorporates surprising juxtapositions, connecting the meaning of clothes and reflecting the complexity and plurality of the contemporary world. The overall mood is one of positivity and joy, capturing lives lived at their best.
PRADA MEN FW24 LIVESTREAMING
LOEWE SS24 MEN’S CAMPAIGN
The LOEWE men's campaign, captured by David Sims, emphasizes the performative nature of the SS24 collection through gestures and movements that define characters. Golden-Globe nominated actor and LOEWE Global Brand Ambassador, Jamie Dornan, and singer-songwriter Omar Apollo are featured in intense moments mid-performance. Jamie appears contemplative and intense, as if at an audition or screen test, while Omar is shown performing on a circular stage or entering a glittery room. The images freeze time, highlighting the intimacy of emotional conversations and the raw energy of performing. The campaign showcases the leathers, knits, and glittery surfaces of the clothing, with accessories like Screen sunglasses, Puzzle Fold tote, and Puzzle bag adding nuance to the characters. Still-life pictures also capture bags and shoes in action, collapsing, folding, or standing on a podium. Overall, the campaign focuses on the performative subject, portraying life and image-making as a means to capture it.
MIU MIU UPCYCLED 24
Miu Miu introduces its fourth limited edition Upcycled collection, focusing on Denim and Patch bags for 2024. Born in 2020, the Upcycled initiative emphasizes the value of vintage clothing, narrating stories of past wearers and promoting circular design practices.
The Denim collection features pre-2000 jeans sourced globally, emphasizing color, weight, and fading qualities. The handcrafted process preserves outer seams, reimagining wardrobe archetypes and accessories for modern use. Flower embroideries draw inspiration from 1950s haute couture, now reimagined in black. Additionally, the Upcycled project includes leather Patch bags made from remnants of Miu Miu designs, highlighting heritage and tradition.
The 2024 collections, brought to life by actor Ever Anderson and model Huijia Chen in visuals by Jet Swan, underscore character, casting, and the intimate connection between garments and wearers.
The Aura Blockchain Consortium ensures transparency and customer-centric practices, verifying each piece in the collection.
The Miu Miu Upcycled Denim and Patch bag collections are available in selected stores worldwide and online.
SL X CHAMPS-ELYSEES
Throughout his tenure as the creative director at Saint Laurent, Anthony Vaccarello has been emphasizing the house’s long-standing relationship with the art sphere. Just recently, the brand has supported two great cultural initiatives - providing patronage on Juergen Teller’s new exhibition ‘i need to live’ at the Grand Palais Éphémère and funding the opening of the Serge Gainsbourg’s house museum in Paris.
This sentiment is reflected in the opening of Saint Laurent Champs-Élysées – the label’s largest flagship store to date. At the vast new space, located in one of the historical Haussmann-era buildings, Vaccarello’s sharp collections are carefully displayed amongst the furniture works by artist Donald Judd and an especially commissioned neon light sculpture by Cerith Wyn Evans. The rough textures and marble displays create an exciting sense of tension in the striking and luminous interior.
Aside from being a famous shopping destination, the store’s location is a loving nod to the house’s founder. “I wanted to realize one of Yves Saint Laurent’s wishes when he arrived in Paris and said he wanted his name to be written in fiery letters on the Champs-Élysées,” says Vaccarello. Now, this wish has become a reality – a truly refined one.
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VOLTAIRE VICE
Over the seasons, Zadig&Voltaire has established itself as the epitome of irreverent elegance, skillfully flirting between a Parisian heritage and a constantly renewed modernity. This autumn, the brand goes one step further by unveiling Voltaire Vice, a lifestyle capsule.
With this drop, ZV reveals everyday objects in a new light: its own. Whether ostensibly functional or addictively superfluous, they are all reinterpreted with a touch of art and style.
Playing with fire, the label has created a black matchbox called "Matches Made in Heaven," a refined lighter, and a gold lighter case. The helmets created in collaboration with Marko Helmets, like the leather bracelets, gloves, and gold cup, are adorned with wings, the eternal emblem of ZV. The cheeky motto "Je m'en fous" ("I don't give a damn") is featured on the playing cards and water bottle. Enhanced with new universes and creations, the Zadig&Voltaire wardrobe becomes more fascinating than ever.
Much more than a drop, this series of objects is part of the house's desire to extend its field of expression, while merging the art of lifestyle and the one of fashion. An invitation to celebrate beauty in simplicity, the extraordinary in the everyday.
MIU MIU HOLIDAY
A sense of intimacy, elegance and charm. Cultivated dress codes redrawn for the here and now. An expression of beauty reconsidered for the many facets of life today.
Starring actor Emma Corrin, Miu Miu Holiday occupies a home, a private space, open to infinite possibilities and interpretation.
The mood is refined: an eased opulence and languor prevails in a filmic environment
familiar to the person who inhabits it, who is cultured and confident - comfortable in their own skin. A contemporary and highly individual spirit embraces innovation just as it does savoir faire.
Incarnations of glamour and elegance past enrich and inform, always with the present and future in mind.
Miu Miu collaborated with Marshall to create a joint line of their iconic products and with Polaroid for cameras complete with branded web camera straps.
MARIE ADAM-LEENAERDT SS24
Photography by Robin Joris
ZOMER SS24
Photography by Robin Joris
SAINT LAURENT X MAISON GAINSBOURG
Maison Gainsbourg, in partnership with Saint Laurent, is opening its doors in Paris (7th). The experience is divided in two distinct sites : the first emblematic site is the historic house where Serge Gainsbourg lived for 22 years, at 5 bis rue de Verneuil.
Across the street, at number 14, is the museum retracing the artist’s life and career, including a bookshop-boutique and a café-piano-bar, Le Gainsbarre. Maison Gainsbourg’s museum is exhibiting some 450 original objects, including Serge Gainsbourg’s one-button women’s jacket with tennis stripes.
For the occasion, the iconic jacket was redesigned by Saint Laurent under the creative direction of Anthony Vaccarello. Available in SAINT LAURENT RIVE DROITE stores and in the Maison Gainsbourg’s boutique.
In 1981, Serge Gainsbourg discovered Stefan de Jaeger’s work and asked him to make a portrait of himself. The portrait is on display in Serge Gainsbourg’s historic house, while SAINT LAURENT RIVE DROITE Paris and Los Angeles will exhibit 2 of the artist’s original artworks named ‘Portraits of men’. Stefan de Jaeger was one of the first visual artists to use instant photography with Polaroid cameras to create large, painterly compositions. He took part in the Gainsbourg exhibition at the Cité de la Musique in 2008, which featured a portrait of Serge Gainsbourg, the visual for the exhibition’s official poster. As a nod to this partnership, the windows of the SAINT LAURENT RIVE DROITE boutiques will feature the same facade as the one on Serge Gainsbourg’s house.
An exclusive selection of vintage Serge Gainsbourg vinyls and books will be available for sale in stores and on YSL.COM.
MIU MIU WOMEN’S TALES COMMITTEE PROJECT
During the Venice Film Festival's "Giornate degli Autori" on September 3rd, Miu Miu premiered two new films as part of its Women’s Tales series: "Stane" by Croatian filmmaker Antoneta Alamat Kusijanović and "Eye two times mouth" by Mexican director Lila Aviles. A two-day conversation program on September 3rd and 4th, hosted by Penny Martin from The Gentlewoman, brings together directors, advocates, and advisors to discuss challenges and opportunities in female filmmaking. The event also marked the introduction of the new Miu Miu Women’s Tales Committee, consisting of influential figures like Ava DuVernay, Maggie Gyllenhaal, and Catherine Martin, aimed at shaping the series' future direction and outreach efforts. Celebrating its second decade, Women’s Tales remains a unique platform for female filmmakers, with the Committee focusing on expanding its impact and narrative.
SAINT LAURENT FALL 23
CHURCH’S X MIU MIU
For Fall/Winter 2023, Miu Miu is pleased to announce a collaboration with Church’s shoes, infusing the formality of the heritage brand with the free spirit the Miu Miu name represents. The launch is celebrated by a still and moving image campaign using a timelessly beautiful gentleman’s armchair, richly upholstered in archive Miu Miu fabric, as a stage.
Multiple positions and gestures are adopted by models wearing the Miu Miu ready-to-wear collection with the Church’s X Miu Miu brogue and double monk strap shoe. The comfort of the armchair and languor of the poses is in direct contrast to the polite and conventional perception of the designs.
Crafted in glossed brushed leather and in classic shades of black and tobacco the Church’s X Miu Miu shoes are rounded and broader in shape than the originals that inspire them. A malleable, non-slip and sporty moulded rubber sole replaces leather. The patterned serration that characterizes both styles is in place. Further rich detailing includes the Miu Miu logo on the tongues of the shoes and embossed into the sides of the soles and the Church’s X Miu Miu logo printed on the insoles. The double monk strap shoes are further embellished with the classic wing-tip motif that emphasizes the British foundations of Church’s.
Miu Miu’s signature play between the traditional and the contemporary is upheld. The reassurance of the familiar is at once celebrated and subverted – undone - to create something new.
Church's X Miu Miu products will be available in avant-première on miumiu.com from August 29 and in Miu Miu stores from September 6th .
