Pierre-Louis Mascia is an artist who delivers his creations in the fashion world. We would not put him in a box of calling him a fashion designer or creative director because his fashion pieces and homonym brand are like a spring of creativity that, just like their tagline, are unpredictable classics.
We had a conversation to talk about his life, his brand, and Grand Bazaar, their latest collection. So we invite you to keep reading to know more about this artist and how life has taught him that being unpredictable is the best way to go.
Extraterrestrial
VT: How did you find out designing was your passion?
PLM: My mother always told me that I was an extraterrestrial, so I have been with other extraterrestrials: creative people!
I think that creation has always been important in my life. At first, as an outlet, when I was a child, and now in a more structured way.
VT: What are the values of your brand? How do they are represented in each piece and garment?
PLM: I would say that the brand Pierre Louis Mascia has two aspects: On one side, it’s a warm and «funky» brand with soft materials such as silk, velvet, colors, and patterns mixed without taboos.
And on the other hand, it’s a brand that wants to be precise. Precise in the stories that we tell in each collection but also in the quality of the products. The idea is to have high-quality products that allow for deviations.
For example, when I use some archives to create prints, I like to keep certain imperfections and marks of time; this gives relief and a story to the prints.
VT: What is the concept behind Unpredictable Classic?
PLM: The first idea is to revisit very “classic” pieces, such as the white shirt, the pleated pants, or the wrap skirt with the print. It’s the print that gives a new look to these iconic pieces.
I try to mix prints from different cultures, eras, and colors as much as possible in very uninhibited ways. We can find 18th century «toils de Jouy» associated with Japanese kimono stripes and 50’s tie patterns as well.
I try to reinterpret these classics from the history of fashion and the applied arts through these associations.
VT: Craftsmanship is one of your signatures. Thus, in your work, how do you balance this ancestral tradition with new technologies?
PLM: We try to build a gentle luxury brand.
First of all, we respect the people who work on the brand, at all levels, without prioritizing the importance of individuals. We also try to respect the geography of our production as much as possible. The entire production process is proudly made in Italy.
The technology proposed by Achille Pinto, our partner, and producer, now allows a fairly impressive degree of precision. The quality of the digitization and printing of certain archives makes it possible to bring old pieces back to life. I find this idea very interesting.
Navigating between worlds
VT: Do you consider this digital era has changed the ways we perceive and interact with fashion? Why?
PLM: Of course, the digital air we entered, all without preparation, has dramatically changed the world. There is the world of yesterday, the world of today, and we have to think about the world of tomorrow. That’s a lot of worlds coming together, but a creative is used to navigating between worlds.
VT: What would you like to share with us about GRAND BAZAAR FW21?
PLM: We have imagined Grand Bazar like a caravan of creative acrobats who could dress in clothes gleaned during various trips. After a period when travel was limited, we wanted to rethink the trip. It is not a tourist or business trip by plane, but a bohemian trip.
The courses of Francois the first were itinerant; they attracted at the same time the poets, the musicians, the merchants, and the nobles. It’s the idea of a city in perpetual motion.
VT: What can tell us about the materials used for this collection?
PLM: There is an extensive series of prints inspired by Aubusson hangings highlighted with floral patterns and camouflages for this collection. You can also find a large series of tie patterns and English college stripes.
Be unpredictable
VT: How do you consider fashion has made your life better in any sense?
PLM: Although I am part of the fashion industry, I feel closer to the fine arts (especially because of my training in the fine arts of Toulouse) than the world of fashion.
What is interesting about fashion is that it is a playground that crystallizes know-how and very varied creations: photography, dance, scenography, writing, etc.
VT: Which advice would you give those who would like to pursue a career in the fashion industry?
PLM: I consider that we should think about fashion better, you sometimes have to know how to forget it and look for references everywhere. In nature, in history, in encounters.
VT: Anything else you would like to share with Vanity Teen?
PLM: Never forget to be unpredictable without ever forgetting your classics.
Before we go
Pierre-Louis Mascia has been teaching us that arts are thoughtful, and artists must cogitate in their creations to positively set a mark on our societies. In the same way, it reminds us that the imperfections of life can make our journeys on Earth more interesting as we create paths full of stories that make us feel alive and appreciate diversity.
He also invites us to find a balance between classics and the joys of unpredictability because we are free to express our feelings in any of the many ways arts embrace us all. His artistic creations are proof that he does as he preaches, and we cannot admire him enough because of it; besides, every collection of the brand Pierre-Louis Mascia is like a feast to our senses, so we hope to keep having them.
Therefore, let us look for those other extraterrestrials Pierre-Louis Mascia told us about, and let us enjoy life by being unpredictable.