Jean-Paul Lespagnard: Pop Art and Belgian Humor
In the weekly heading "New Brand" Wonderzine presents young designers and tells where and how you can buy their things. Our hero this week is Jean-Paul Lespanyar, a Belgian designer, artist and stylist who presented his first collection in 2011.
Jean-Paul Lespanyar was born in 1979 in the city of Liege, where he received his education in design. He graduated from the IFAPME de Liège University with a degree in visual arts and fashion design, and was trained in Luxembourg. In 2005, Lespanyar worked as an assistant to the owner of the Belgian brand Annemie Verbeke, and later participated in the development of two collections of the New York brand Anna Sui. Jean-Paul proved himself as a talented costume designer. He was the author of clothing for several theater and dance productions. Meg Stewart, American choreographer and one of the key figures in the world of contemporary dance, appreciated Lespanyar’s unusual approach to design - they now collaborate on a regular basis. In 2008, Jean-Paul received two awards at the 23rd International Festival of Fashion and Photography in French Yerais, where he presented his collection called Ich will 'nen Cowboy als Mann (the name of the hit song Gitte Hænning 1963). Winning the competition gave the young designer the opportunity to create a capsule collection for the French brand 1.2.3. The Jean-Paul Lespagnard collection for the fall-winter 2011/12 season was first presented at the Paris Fashion Week.
To create his products, the designer uses a wide variety of materials: silk, brocade, wool, plastic, neoprene, etc. The original prints of Lespagnard include original prints and textures of fabrics. Special attention should be paid to accessories, for example, hand-made covers with iPhone applications or silk scarves with funny patterns. In each collection, the designer slips the share of irony. According to Lespanyar, he is inspired by pop culture, theater, dance, painting - art in general. It is worth noting that Jean-Paul Lespanyar received financial support from Anna Chapelle, the head of the BVBA 32, known for her work with Anne Demeulmeister and Heider Akkerman.
In 2011, the designer and artist founded a brand name. In December 2013, the Artist Studio division of the famous manufacturer of backpacks and bags Eastpak presented a collection in collaboration with Jean-Paul Lespagnard. The limited edition, created by Lespanyar, consists of two variants of backpacks in two colors. During the show of the 2014 spring-summer collection, models took to the podium with Eastpak by Lespagnard. From January to April 2014 in the Paris Galeries Lafayette, an exhibition of Jean-Paul Lespagnard: Till we drop was held, which talked about the process of creating the spring-summer 2014 collection. Its theme is mass tourism in Mexico. In the collection are caps embroidered with beads, free-cut items with prints, skirts resembling tourists' towels, overalls. In Galeries Lafayette, Lespagnier presented photographs, drawings and installations complementing the ideological picture of the new collection.
On April 14, 2014, Woolmark chose the brand Jean-Paul Lespagnard as one of the 19 grant participants. The first stage will take place on July 8 in Paris, the task of the designers will be to present the capsule collections of merino wool.
I always wanted to work in fashion, and it never raised questions. I understood that it could be hard, but for me everything went instinctively. I think many things go from the inside. I am sure fashion is something based on intuition. During my studies, I made a collection called "The Virgin Mary - Football Player", where I compared hooliganism and religious fanaticism. These are things that make me talk. Clothes should speak. From the classic brands I like the most Lanvin, Fashion House with a sense of humor. I love Alber Elbaz, although his style is not mine.
Where to buy things Jean-Paul Lespagnard
Jean-Paul Lespagnard clothing and accessories can be purchased at STJL (Brussels), Galeries Lafayette (Paris), 10 Corso Como (Milan), as well as SVMoscow (Moscow).