Clément Picot Talks Reality and Nightmares in Fashion
Clément Picot, Dream Until the End. Video: Cathelo Studio Movie
Clément Picot, 23, is an emerging fashion designer based in Paris, France. Picot got his start in fashion in 2009 after coming across Lady Gaga's "Bad Romance" music video on YouTube and watching several fashion shows by Alexander McQueen. From that point on, Picot realized that fashion is his destiny.
Picot had the opportunity to start his fashion training early at the age of 15, and after three years of studying, he began an internship at the Balmain Atelier. Afterward, Picot was accepted to the renowned Bachelor's Degree program at the Institut Français de la Mode, formerly known as La Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne.
He discovered and developed his creative universe during his studies, inspired by horror movies, music, underground scenes, the Bauhaus movement, and art. We talked with Picot about his prominent collection, creative processes, and his philosophy toward fashion.
Model: Chloé Stolar
gggaaallleeerrryyy: How would you describe your work? What are some of your muses/inspirations?
Clément Picot: I would describe my work as a movie. I like the idea of a world between a dream and a nightmare.
My goal is to tell a story through my collection and my clothes. For example, in my latest collection, the cuts are extremely important as well as the details. They play a key role in the evolution of the collection. I like the idea that a garment or a look can transform a person, projecting them into another world.
In my work, I like to be inspired by a lot of things like movies and especially horror movies from the '80s and '90s are a great source of inspiration like Dracula by Coppola or The Shining, which are part of my favorites, music, and Art is also one of the main inspirations in my projects. I would say that my greatest muses are Lady Gaga, Chloe Sevigny, Tilda Swinton, Arca, and many others.
Model: Nana Takagi
ggg: There's a strong sense of fluidity throughout your silhouettes and designs, in which you blur binary division and embrace the gender spectrum. Tell us more about that.
CL: Indeed, when I design my collection, I don't really think about what "gender" could wear the garment. I think more about how the silhouette of my clothes could transform or empower.
I find it fascinating how a garment metamorphoses depending on the body that wears it, how the person appropriates it. How would this coat or this dress look on a woman or a man, for example. I think that fashion should think more like this in order to push the barriers of the codes of the feminine and masculine fashion of today.
ggg: Can you tell us about your research process? What inspires you, and how does that translate into your work?
CL: I like to be inspired by a lot of things like movies and especially horror movies from the '80s and '90s are a great source of inspiration like Dracula by Coppola or The Shining, which are part of my favorites, music, and Art are also one of the main inspirations in my projects, for example, the Bauhaus art and Matthew Barney's work have been an essential inspiration. In the process, I love to create my own storyline with a lot of different things. It's almost like I'm creating a frame with all my inspiration and what I think will go well together. This allows me to create my own narrative.
ggg: Your work is truly a combination of fashion and Art. Can you tell us more about your inspiration for your latest collection, "DREAM UNTIL THE END"? What are you trying to convey in your designs? What is the story behind it?
CL: Dream Until the End is the representation of the border between reality and nightmare. Everything is based on a balance of constant confrontation, often making us dizzy. It is a journey that transports you into a dream world, making you feel the psychotic syndrome combining hallucinations and mental confusion, a delirium lived with intensity, resembling a dream or a nightmare. It all depends on what you decide.
ggg: What do you want your audience to take away?
CL: I want my audience to dream and to bring them through a journey. Make them things. Make them wonder and disturb them, almost like a good thriller or horror movie.
