Following a collection that explored physical violence last season, Paris-based Louis Gabriel Nouchi wanted to push further into what he dubbed his “American cycle” by delving into another cruelty done unto men: the way societies still condition them to repress emotions not considered masculine.
Case in point according to the designer is Christopher Isherwood’s 1964 novel “A Single Man,” the literary throughline of the season, in which the protagonist is unable to mourn the death of his partner.
To express the emotional upheavals that roil beneath the surface, the designer played with the tension between structured jackets and trousers that represented “what’s expected from men today” and more sensual pieces like tailored bodysuits cut high to unveil the hip or bared backs hinting at a more complex emotional range.
“We are struggling as men and it’s important to show sensuality rather than sexuality,” he said backstage. “Putting bodysuits on a man is still controversial while they’re a staple in womenswear. But why should we not break this balance — not in a violent way — but as a soft revolution?”
Nouchi said he’d wanted to root his work in the rougher book-congruent ’60s universe, rather than Tom Ford’s slick cinematic take, riffing on the 1960s’ wide shoulder line and tightened for his tailoring, or working a palette evocative of the novel, down to the splashes of blue that nod to the water and a 3D jacquard that had a metallic flash to it due to the way the yarn is woven.
Standouts included sensual loungewear-adjacent trousers, shirts, slinky housecoats, a honeycomb knit set of shorts, a boatneck sweater sliding off the shoulder and, of course, Nouchi’s sensational tailored jackets.
Behind the scenes, LGN has been busy cleaning up its act — in terms of sustainable credentials, that is. Not only has the designer continued his partnership with Ecco Leathers that resulted in, say, pieces cut wax-dyed memory leather that could be twisted into place, but also micromodal and lyocell. He’s also been working on shortening his supply chain, including for production, now heavily weighted toward France.
Along with his realistic casting that included clients of all sizes but also fellow designer Spencer Phipps, this reinforced the idea that Nouchi is a designer with as much sense as sensibility.