For Pascal Mihranian, Less Is Always More

November 28, 2023

Born from the essentials of the styling kit, contemporary label kits SS24 collection reminds us that there's beauty in simplicity. Embracing authenticity in a digital era dominated by unrealistic trend cycles, kits confidently inserts itself into the conversation without waiting for an invitation. Pascal Mihranian, the Paris-born downtown force behind the label, boasts a remarkable design repertoire, including crafting costumes for Solange's captivating performance art piece at the 2022 Venice Biennale. On October 30th, he held his biggest show to date at Tara Downs in Tribeca, debuting a new collaboration with intimate brand Sheertex. The New York-based designer brought his vision to life through the experimental use of hosiery and dead stock materials, allowing his intuitive sense of chicness to shine through.

At its core, kits' pieces eschew theatrics, effortlessly asserting their tactful aptness amid the current sensationalism of spectacle on social media. Each look rejects ostentation, instead honoring the human figure as a canvas for versatile expression. Stripped down to its original form, the clothing is both vulnerable and bold, capturing attention without the need for loud declarations. Through the execution of flattering cuts, precise tailoring, and selective use of monochrome hues, the collection alludes to fragility yet transcends as staple pieces capable of withstanding the test of time, even in the most transformative episodes of self-reinvention.

Words by Sarah Ignas
Photos by Kayhl Cooper

How would you describe your personal style in three words?

Simple, good fabrics and cuts, classic.

What is one trend you love right now and one not so much?

What are the trends right now? I love the sheer trend and leather. I don’t know if you can call it a trend because it’s always in. What I don’t like, which I guess is already out of trend, is logos.

Are there any particular fashion eras or designers that influence your work?

Definitely influenced by the 90s. In general, the anti-fashion designers of the 90’s: Margiela, Helmut Lang, Rei Kawakubo. Early Calvin Klein too. A mix of classic American and conceptual Belgium.

Where do you go to find inspiration in New York?

Galleries are probably the most inspiring. Just as much as galleries, just going out in New York. There is nowhere else in the world where fashion is practiced this much. Going out here is very interesting, just looking at what people resonate with. One of the reasons I am in New York is how stimulated I am by the art and party scene here.

I have to ask, how was working with Solange for the Venice Biennale?

It was the most amazing thing, the thing I’m the most proud of. But also the most stressful thing. We had to turn around sixty pieces in four days, which I had never done before. The PR at the time said it wouldn’t be possible, but I said no it’s possible. I’m going to make it. I had to stay up two nights in a row to get everything done. Seeing the performance was absolutely worth it and I’m so proud of it. I was listening to her music while designing the collection.

Amazing.

It was a moment.

How would you describe the type of person you design clothing for?

Confident and Intentional.

What is the inspiration behind this collection?

Very much the women that were around me. A lot of strong women. Tara Downs is a perfect example. She’s one of the art dealers downtown of whom I respect the taste of the most. How do you express taste in fashion? For me, it was about measuring how much you leave a garment as is and how much ornamentation or design choices you add to it until it becomes too much.

Do you have a favorite fabric you like to work with?

I mean hosiery. No doubt on that one.

How do you get unstuck creatively? Or push through creative blockages?  

There was a time when I would take a break, leave my life for a few days, and pause. But now if I’m ever stuck creatively, it’s work harder. There’s no secret. I lock myself in the studio, watch some things, and listen to music. Music is a very good element to get unstuck. Working harder is now my new strategy. I lock myself inside from the outside world and just face the problem.

Did you always have this vision of duality for the piece to be both an undergarment and a garment?

Yes, I think that’s really how we started. I think it also goes further than undergarments. Standard garments that really interest me. The same pair of hosiery can become a full-on dress. I’m really interested in exploring how a t-shirt can become a full look. What interests me is making a very basic garment look like a look. Undergarments are obviously such a big part of the styling kit, that it’s been the main focus. But I really like the aspect of something so fragile, sheer, and revealing that becomes a full outfit, becoming your personality.

I'm curious to know more about the tube dress while the model is covering her chest. Did you have that in mind while making the garment? Or did that happen organically during rehearsal?

I have to attribute that to our stylist Akari Endo Gaut. That was a dress that was not going to make it because we had the nude version that opened the show originally, and then she said no, let's do it. It was all a common effort. It just told the story right and set the tone. The sheerness was proving the vulnerability, but then it’s Tina walking and she has that red lip and sleek hair, making it something vulnerable and very strong.

Why did you choose a gallery for the backdrop of your 6th show?

It started with Tara when she offered her space. I asked her to open the show because she was one of the woman that inspired me. In previous collections, there was always an altercation with art. But now that we’re in a gallery this time, I don’t want to talk about art. This point of view is clearly fashion. Having the support of the gallery allowed me to focus on fashion and not worry about showing artfulness. I wanted to get rid of the theatrics.

How was this show different from previous shows?

It was the biggest one. It was a full collection, the 6th one I’ve done with kits. Past collections were showing concepts. This time I wanted it to feel like a full collection with hopes people can find something to relate to. It was much more diverse in styles. A little bit of streetwear, a lot of artisanal pieces, more wearables, real tailoring. It was trying to develop ideas that already existed and explore them both aesthetically and technically.

How did the collaboration with Sheertex come about?

At first, I sourced from wholesalers in the Lower East Side where I was living. There were a lot of shops that had mountains of hosiery and I would go in and buy their dead stock. I discovered Sheertex and I thought it could be a new approach to sustainability. It’s an industry that produces so much waste. You know tights rip and run, but having this technology that Sheertex created that makes anti-rip and run tights, that is forever and non-disposable. I reached out and it took a while in the making because the fabric is very different from what I’m used to working with. I’m hoping we can go towards more durable fabrics that can pass the test of time.

What was the most exciting moment of the show?

It was like a big family coming together and doing something together. The whole show was the most exciting thing I had experienced. It was such a wonderful day mostly because of the people backstage: the stylists, hair stylists, make-up artists, Gia, the producer, and the models. Overall, just seeing the images after and the production of work from so many talented friends was the most exciting for me.

Fashion

Happy 424 Day!

Simon Rasmussen — What's going on?

Guillermo Andrade — Right now we're just setting everything up.

So, what are you doing, is it a party?

Well, I kind of felt universally forced, right? Because 4/24/24, I was just like, I don’t really have a choice here. The stars also just kind of aligned, so to be honest, I got this settlement that came with a bunch of clothes so I had this idea to give back to the kids who fuck with us by allowing them to buy our shit first. Not handing stuff out for free, but to do it in a way where we could skip the middleman of the industry, so to speak, and not allow clothes to disappear into the abyss of Farfetch or whatever else. So what we’re going to do is a sort of warehouse sale, which we’ve never done before so that was really exciting for me. I didn’t want to do just another warehouse sale, so it’s like a sample sale turns rager. We teamed up with Adidas and a couple of other sponsors, then drinks, DJs, and a performance.

Sick, I love it.

Yeah. My dream sample sale. Also, it’s not just hoodies and t-shirts here in there, it’s proper collections from the past three seasons. I’m also not picking and choosing, trying to make it accessible, like this was the only way I could afford to buy shit when I was a kid, bro. Sample sales were the thing I looked forward to the most.

I feel you. In New York, there's the annual CDG sale, which is when I used to cop all my CDG.

The only time I could afford Rick. I flew to New York once for a Rick sample sale and I was like, Wow, I can't believe I got invited. And it was mental. I still have those pieces. I will never sell them. Not even because I got 'em cheap. It was also just really fun. Even on the flight to New York, I was like, I can't believe I'm going to New York for a sample sale, what a fucking loser I am. But it was like the adult version of when I was a kid and I was like, Wow, I can't believe I'm 20-something and I'm still doing the thing I was doing in high school. So I hope we can create moments like that for kids here in LA.

Yeah. I love that. It’s important to connect with them; they’re essentially creating the brand. If you don't have them, good luck.

I mean, yeah. Fuck, bro. It's cool that we've been around for this long. I mean, it got a little rocky there for a second I think, for all of us. So coming out of it, tomorrow is a celebration. And it’s like an odd day of the week. It's a Wednesday, super random. And now that we've set it up, the homies are all like, Yo, I'm coming. I'm coming. Let me jump on stage, let me do this, and that's really what it's always been about. It's not some other strategy to get likes on the internet.

That’s how the best things happen, you just couldn’t help yourself. It was intuitive.

Yeah, it all came together in a really nice way.

Would you say that’s how 424 started as well? I remember we met in like 2010 on Fairfax and I was visiting with Rasmus…

Oh bro, it’s probably the time when I started the branch… do you remember Cecilia from Black Dakini? She’s the one that introduced me to CIFF and honestly, I didn’t even care what she was doing, I was just like, I’m coming, I’ll go with you. She said she’d give me half of her booth and I said, Awesome count me in. At the time, I had just gotten my green card and I wasn't allowed to ever leave America, so Copenhagen was one of the first cities I went to when I could finally travel. I mean, you see what we did at CIFF bro? It became our fucking hub for half a decade.

That was a moment for sure.

I remember the first account I got was Antonioli, and he came super gangster, being like, You're going to sell me these clothes. And I was like, bro, I didn't come to sell clothes. I'm just kind of catching a vibe with my homie and I made these things. And he's like, No, you're going to sell it to me. And then I was like, Oh my god that’s Claudio Antonioli. So then I went home, I googled wholesale, and figured that shit out. [laughs]

[Laughs]

Like you said, I couldn't help myself, but I didn't just make t-shirts and hoodies either. I was really on my Rick wave, so I made my version of the Rick things. It was that meets like The Boondock Saints, because I'm still a little bit of a Cali bro, sort of rock kid, but not really. I like hip-hop, but I like the way the rock stars look. I like the contrast. I thought it was cool. After that, I just never stopped.

It was clear to me when I first met you that you were onto your own thing in LA. It made a lot of sense, and it was so cool. It was before 424 was its own brand; you just had the store and this really cool curation.

It was all my shit, bro. I was very, very invested in sharing all of these things that I was finding from all over the world, like Astrid Anderson. She was one of those designers at the time, so important to 424. The connection to Copenhagen specifically for me was huge. I had a big fan base there. It was incredible. And then here in LA, we were sharing the things that we were a part of and finding; it was still the early days of Fear of God, Rhude, Martine Rose. A lot of these brands, we were the first store to ever sell it — we were selling Hood By Air on the West Coast.

You had Rick as well, I remember.

Oh yeah. It took me a long time. But I got Rick, bro. By the time I had to close the store on Fairfax, I already had a Raf Simons account. I had reached my ultimate dream. It was really all the stuff I wanted to wear at the time. It was dope. The best of the best.

We had an office magazine newsstand in there as well.

Oh yeah, we did! I came to visit the one you had, and I was like, Yo, I got to bring this whole fucking thing over here. But yeah, in LA, after two days people forget you exist, but everyone’s been super supportive. We’re all 10 years older now. We've been around forever at this point.

It can be dangerous to take those breaks when you’re figuring shit out, but there’s something very genuine to this comeback you’re having.

Thank you, thank you. We’ve been in and out of those fucking showrooms in Paris for long enough. I've been in and out of these factories for the past 10 years of my life. We had to figure something out. And I think now really diving in, being in Italy full time and being there to develop these products over time, I think that the whole thing just really shows the suppliers respect you more. The people who are making your goods understand why you're making them. And I think now I finally got to the place where I'm not making Italian things, I’m making my clothes, I'm making Cali-centric shit, but with that European technicality and execution. With this Fall / Winter collection, it clicked.

So what’s the vision for the next year? What are you manifesting?

I'm just fucking relentless, bro. This is the way I want to live my life. Now that we are more aligned, more prepared, and have more experience, moving forward it is just more of becoming a fully functioning company that can provide and create opportunities for all of the people around me. We’ve been operating just on instinct for a long time.

Sustaining a business is scary, trust me I know.

Scary as fuck, dog. I just opened a store next to Bottega, bro, and it’s like what am I even doing? You have to just believe in the thing you're doing more than anybody else.

100%, and it seems like that’s what you’re doing.

And fashion’s kind of a competitive sport, as much as people don’t think it is. We can reach a certain level without losing ourselves. My biggest ambition at the moment is to create something that, when you leave one of our neighbors you come into our place you don’t feel that the level has been sacrificed at all. And it’s not easy.

Definitely. I wish I could be there tomorrow.

Thank you, bro. 10 years now. You’ve always shown me so much love. We have to do a booth or have the office part of the next 424 day. Shit let’s do a 424 day in New York.

That would be sick. Let's do it. I'm here. Let’s catch up soon.

Next season’s right around the corner so I’ll see you in Paris.

Yes, see you in Paris and Happy 424 day!

Fashion

Luis De Javier's Puta Takeover

April 25, 2024

Last night with Luis De Javier, guests were overheard confirming this generation's most vital conundrum: “If I’m cunt, I can still be pussy.” “And if you’re pussy, you can still be cunt.” This sentiment echoed throughout the night as we celebrated De Javier’s first-ever streetwear collection, "Puta". We spent seven hours at Ella Funt at a dinner turned party that only he could’ve thrown (co-hosted by emcee). It was too dark for even the most aspiring-to-look-mysterious of us to wear sunglasses inside. Under the semi-oppressive flash of party photographers, we danced as much as the space would allow, drank tequila out of teacups and kissed each other on the cheeks with a vaguely European intimacy. “I’m doing streetwear!” De Javier could be heard exclaiming — whether it be in disbelief or excitement, we couldn’t tell you.

Words and photos by Izzy Capulong

The Spanish-born London-based designer has been well-loved for his genderless tailoring, latex mastery, and overall message of empowerment. Dressing everyone from ravers to A-listers, De Javier’s latest drop pushes his design repertoire to a new level. “While designing for my celebrity clientele and showcasing my creations on the runway has always been my dream,” he notes, “It’s equally important to me that my brand resonates with a wider, more diverse audience.” While this collection’s medium has shifted from corsets to sweatshirts, the classic LDJ avant-garde sensibilities remain. Bikinis and booty shorts are shamelessly emblazoned with “PUTA,” blazers are constructed with ample shoulder padding, and I had my eye on the cheekily-named “Faguette Bag.”

The Puta collection will be available exclusively on emcee.

Fashion

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To celebrate the launch, Cohen and founder and creative director of Paris Texas, Annamaria Brivio hosted an intimate dinner at the Chateau Marmont pictured below. Arman Naféei entertained guests throughout the evening with a special playlist he curated for the occasion.