This morning, Vionnet sent out a press release announcing the appointment of Hussein Chalayan as the designer of the brand’s demi-couture collection. Chalayan, who is known for more avant-garde designs with his eponymous label, was seemingly tapped by the French brand in an effort to bring a cooler, edgier vibe to this collection: “Chalayan is one of the most creative and provocative designers working in fashion today,” Vionnet chairman and creative director Goga Ashkenazi said in the press release. “I have always been intrigued by his conceptual approach and the fearless way his work travels outside the traditional confines of fashion. It is an honor for me to work with someone I admire so much. I know he will bring something special to Vionnet’s Demi-Couture collection.”
The demi-couture collection — which has all the bells and whistles of couture craftsmanship, but at a more ready-to-wear, accessible price point, hence the demi — will show during Paris’s Haute Couture Week in January. So either Chalayan has been working on this for a while and just knows how to keep a secret, or he’s about to take a loan out on Santa’s elves for the duration.
