<p>After 12 years alongside Nicolas Ghesqui&egrave;re and a brief stint at Dior with Raf Simons, newly appointed artistic director of Courr&egrave;ges Nicolas Di Felice brings the famous space-age fashion house back to life. Here, L'OFFICIEL speaks with the designer about his vision for the French fashion house.</p>

<p style="text-align: center;"><strong>Photography Jules Faure</strong></p>

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      <p><span><em>L&rsquo;OFFICIEL</em>: </span><span><em>You were born in the post-industrial Belgian city of Charleroi. How has architecture influenced you?</em><br /></span><span></span></p>
      <p><span>NICOLAS DI FELICE: </span><span>It&rsquo;s not the <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/travel-living/pierre-yovanovitch-furniture-chateau" target="_blank" rel="noopener">architecture</a> of Charleroi that inspires me, but rather its harsh, dark side, which is also popular and very lively. I love this city for its contrasts. What inspires me in my work is precisely the contrast between Charleroi and Paris. If I had to keep an image of my childhood, it would be those car trips where we went from a field as far as the eye can see to a club in a hangar whose façade was lit up with a bright neon pink. El Dorado, in a Las Vegas spirit. </span></p>
      <p><span><br />L&rsquo;O: </span><span><em>Did your interest in fashion originate with MTV?</em></span></p>
      <p><span>NDF: </span><span>We didn&rsquo;t have access to fashion magazines. There were no billboards. So between the 1980s and 2000, my first glimpses of fashion were on <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/film-tv/film-directors-who-got-their-start-directing-music-videos" target="_blank" rel="noopener">MTV</a>. It helped me understand that we can create our own character and universe.</span></p>
      <p><span><br />L&rsquo;O: </span><em>What were your years at Balenciaga like?</em></p>
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            <p><span>NDF: </span><span>From <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/naomi-osaka-tennis-louis-vuitton-nicolas-ghesquiere" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Nicolas Ghesquière</a>, I learned precision. Even though I was already a very precise person, I had a great respect for the material, and I loved to sew. But at Balenciaga, it was a level above. Each stylist had to make a few pieces, but each one was more than merely completed&mdash;it was perfect. I learned to be precise not only in my way of working, but also in what I expect from the people with whom I work. Before making images, I am first a technician. I make clothes, and I&rsquo;m proud of it. </span></p>
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      <p><span>L&rsquo;O: </span><em>And with <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion-week/raf-simons-prada-menswear-debut-fall-winter-2021" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Raf Simons</a>...</em></p>
      <em> </em>
      <p><span>NDF: </span><span>It was a relatively short time. I have fond memories of Raf when he was at Dior. He is a romantic and passionate person. But his focus at Dior was very much on drawing. When I was a student at La Cambre, we had to draw pieces in a pragmatic&mdash;not artistic&mdash;way. I spent a year drawing, but what I really love is creating clothes on the body: cutting, pinning, making, and redoing.</span></p>
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            <p><span><br />L&rsquo;O: </span><em>The fashion of André and Coqueline Courrèges was geometric with the A-line miniskirt; avant-garde in its volumes giving free rein to the freedom of the body; and optimistic in its colors. What is your vision for <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion-week/courreges-nicolas-di-felice-debut" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Courrèges</a>? </em></p>
            <p><span>NDF: </span><span>What I mainly remember from their work is that their clothes were made to be worn. That was their wish. I like André&rsquo;s preoccupation with taking his fashion to the streets. I also remember his quest for purity and simplicity. When you remodel a house, you must obviously respect its heritage. But there is also a moment when it is your own vision that you have to put forward. I offer simple things. I have no intellectual pretensions, even if I think a lot.</span></p>
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                  <p><span><br />L&rsquo;O: </span><span><em>When you were appointed artistic director of the house, one of the first things you did was a reissue of the brand&rsquo;s strongest pieces in a much more eco-responsible vinyl.</em><br /></span><span></span></p>
                  <p><span>NDF: </span><span>It is a new fabric on a 100 percent <a href="https://www.lofficielusa.com/fashion/definition-of-ethical-sustainable-fashion-fair-trade" target="_blank" rel="noopener">eco-friendly</a> cotton jersey base and the polyurethane on it is 70 percent derived from vegetables. I am a creator with social and societal concerns. </span></p>
                  <p><span><br />L&rsquo;O: </span><em>Why this first collection of reissues?</em></p>
                  <p><span>NDF: </span><span>It is important that these pieces remain and exist. </span></p>
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      <p><span>L&rsquo;O: </span><em>Tell us about your first show at Courrèges, which took place in a white cube built at La Station, a cultural center in the north of Paris?</em></p>
      <p><span>NDF: </span><span>When I learned that the show would not be face-to-face, I had to change my mind very quickly. I felt locked away, and that&rsquo;s where the idea came from. While the models were doing their last lap, a drone filmed people climbing the walls of the cube. </span></p>
      <p><span><br />L&rsquo;O: </span><em>What is the concept behind the Fall/Winter 2021 collection? </em></p>
      <p><span>NDF: </span><span>It begins with heritage pieces that evoke the Courrèges salons of the past. The very first look is a kimono coat whose construction, pockets, and sleeves are inspired by an André Courrèges coat, which is part of our archives. He wears it in a very touching photo that I adore, in which he poses very proudly in front of his shop. I also paid tribute to the workshop years of the house from 1960 to 1967. As the show unfolded, I showed little by little that I was more comfortable with what I had in my hands, to make room for my own universe. Several silhouettes express this feeling. You have the two worlds: That of the house&rsquo;s history, and mine. </span></p>
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      <p><span>STYLED BY </span><span><strong>Kenzia Bengel de Vaulx </strong><br /></span><span>MODEL </span><span><strong>Ivana Trivic </strong><br /></span><span>HAIR AND MAKEUP </span><strong>Caroline Fouet </strong></p>
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The Radical Simplicity of Nicolas Di Felice's Courrèges

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