Pioneer Denim, the new horizon denim collection The - Denim Première Vision
Christian Reca introduces us to the new “Denim pioneers”, a classy and contemporary tribe that has recovered and embraced the concept of Couture. And launches an appeal to Fashion Houses.
The concept of this new collection was developed according to an approach that proposes denim as a truly noble fabric. It means linking it to a style of garments crafted with care, care for detail, and bearing the flavour of Couture. Without compromise.
Over the last fifteen years, denim has not been valued by the market and by the main players in the marketplace, which are the brands. Nowadays, denim is mostly conceived as five-pockets with fairly monotonous, dull washes that don’t stand out, have neither soul nor innovative edge.
PIONEER DENIM, piecing together the history of Couture, which in the ‘80s and ‘90s was expressed by leading fashion maisons animated by artists and visionaries–from Vivienne Westwood to Martin Margiela, and Roberto Cavalli of his heyday–proposed denim as a fabric for garments with cuts and constructions that were highly groundbreaking for that time. Certainly not the classic five-pocket with various washes, but a lined jacket, a garment or a dress that wrapped up the woman in flair, and that expressed a higher creativity. A denim trench enjoyed on the catwalk the same dignity as a precious silk dress.
With this collection PIONEER DENIM aims to recover the nobleness of denim, and shout to the world: “let’s heighten the value of denim!”. Not just by embellishing it with a detail, a special pocket, contour cuts and distinctive buttons. These features are all part of a well-made garment: the precious button is fine, it is important but, it does not enhance denim as a noble fabric. I am addressing chief Fashion Houses, and inviting them to rediscover the “nobility” of denim, so as to trigger a positive domino effect across the whole sector, which will then perceive the importance of a new aesthetic awareness, and the potential of a surprising fabric such as denim. A message that will inevitably reach the final consumer, who loves being seduced by innovative ideas.
It is very important that fashion houses and product offices lend denim, a truly unique and transformative fabric, the same standing that is granted to noble fibers and materials like silk, cashmere and linen. Denim’s performance can indeed be amazing. However, fashion brands often rely on suppliers, whose approach to denim is industrial, without the creative flair that is need to inspire a fashion designer. A laundry will come up with something based on its experience with washing, as does each supplier in their field. The designer, though, needs to think outside the box, hence he ought to be supported when it comes to fabric and the way it is processed. PIONEER wants to offer a true culture, one of “tailoring”, sharing its expertise with client brands and support their unique “personalities”. The garments we are going to showcase at DENIM PV Milano are manufactured, washed, finished and created from scratch within PIONEER, thanks to specialists who are equipped to meet each and every need in terms of style and construction of the collection, step by step.
A brand that wants to produce “Couture” denim, or aims to offer Couture on a more commercial level, can turn to us. We can offer a quality of service that is uncommon on the market, from the paper patterns to the finished garment. We can indeed rely on extremely skillful pattern makers.
With us, the brand can choose from the yarn itself down to different fabric structures: cross edge, slubs, open end, broken twill, bottoming effect… Our goal is to provide tangible support, including advice on washes and yarn or fabric overdying.
Where did the idea for a collection inspired by the American West stem from? This year, perhaps also due to the latest political elections, we are particularly influenced by the USA. Even several TV series are re-proposing this world with a contemporary twist. Talking about America’s historicity in terms of denim brings back to mind the real America of the pioneers (hence the connection with our PIONEER DENIM), of the gold diggers, characters dating back to the West of the mid-late nineteenth century. We propose versions that are obviously revisited and updated, and that look to Couture. It’s no longer the jacket with fringes, with embroidered patterns, with stars, or the Squaw style of the Native Americans. It is instead the vision of a new cowboy, a “new Rodeo”, a “New Pioneer”, who, through denim, exudes a special, creative and sophisticated allure. At DENIM PV we are going to display very meaningful items on this theme: sartorial, inspired creations that are set to cause a stir.