Wednesday, September 21, 2011

150 Grams of Happiness!

No I am not talking something illegal here but of Leonard!
“Cut out a square of silk, a big square, a metre thirty by a metre thirty. On the silk, place an orchid, pose it. Draw it, paint it, recreate the precise graduation of colours, the blush on the bloom. There are over thirty shades in your work, requiring over thirty passes through the printing press. You can pose a wave in the same way, or a fish, whatever your dreams of the Far-East inspire. The only condition is that it should be beautiful, that the composition holds. Nothing weak, nothing insipid; you are Leonard.


Unfurl the square; float the silk, fluttering and weightless, sending ripples through the image, the colours. Some bright, some darker, like life. Within the square, or two if necessary, outline a dress, a blouse, trousers, a tie... Or choose not to; outline nothing, let the square exist simply as a scarf. Adorn this printed silk with the body of a woman: that's Leonard.”
The story of Leonard stretches back half a century and follows closely the trajectory of Pucci. Conceived in the same era and worn by the same members of the jet-set, Leonard quietly steers a course through fashion and style without the hype that has surrounded Pucci in the last couple of years.

Although similar in style and look Pucci is full of the abstract while Leonard concentrated on floral and romantic with a touch of orientalism thrown in. If one were to look at a Leonard dress without looking at the label, without hesitation one would assume they were Pucci.
However one has to fine tune one’s eye to notice the differences. Their exuberant prints with Asian inspired floral motifs are a lot more refined than Pucci. . A signature style of weightless silk and colorful prints has become the foundation of the house, with their first caption being, “150 grams of happiness”

Their silks being so divine they were the first non-Japanese house to create a collection of Kimonos for the Japanese market in over 2000 years.


Under the artistic direction of Veronique Leroy, Belgian fashion designer the Asian influence is still strong for this season, however there is a new sensuality with prints that are more abstract and graphic than romantic. This collection seems poised to propel Leonard into a next generation of wearers. Designs have an entirely new character and attitude that is oozing modernity, with references to past collections. The traditional printed orchids and peonies have now been mixed with printed python's skin in geometrical forms, to bring a charismatic side to femininity, not seen for a long time.
“And Leonard is also a family. My two daughters, Nathalie and Virginie, work by my side, along with a dedicated team, all of us together enshrining the creative past and future of our House, artists, painters, stylists, seamstresses... We may be long-established, but we have young talent, and nothing gives me greater pleasure than discovering new treasures created by our novices.
Except perhaps one thing, which gives me even greater pleasure: in the course of an evening, on the street, on the beach, to see Leonard silk worn elegantly by an attractive woman, to see the Leonard orchid, fuchsia, lavender, lemon, golds, mauves and greens alive in a subtle harmony of movement. Subtle and light, as life should be. As it is, with Leonard.”
Daniel Tribouillard, President and Founder.

18 comments:

  1. Some people are Pucci people, some are Leonard people.
    For the record, I'm a Leonard person.

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  2. Beautiful post, I think I favor Leonard since I find them more elegant and refined.

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  3. My mom loves Leonard!
    I didn't know there was a perfume line, David~

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  4. Hello David:
    Simply wonderful. To float through life in all that silk - what a dream!

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  5. I second Jane and Lance Hattatt. Silk is highly pleasurable.

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  6. It's amazing!

    I'm following you :)

    http://www.thelatestfashionissue.com

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  7. the prints are indeed beautiful. reading through your first paragraphs, i couldn't imagine the effort involved in coming up with these fantastic prints. thanks for sharing.

    http://halfwhiteboy.blogspot.com/

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  8. love the Prints! they are amazing!
    cool post!

    hugs
    J.Kane
    Http://mrkanerule.blogspot.com

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  9. I love the airiness of these pieces, especially since it's hard to accomplish with such bold prints.

    Diego
    www.howtozipyourfly.com

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  10. Love the Pucci photos, they're fantastic :D
    xxx

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  11. Such a fabulous brand. Love them for their prints.

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  12. Stunning photographs, and much has to be said for any Western designer who can successfully market to kimono buyers!

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  13. It's a nice post as always.
    Léonard is for me very elegant and unique.
    The colors are great.

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  14. I love the research that went into this post! Leonard is wonderful though I am more familiar with Pucci than this label! I love those '70s photos you dug up too and am amazed about their Kimono line.

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  15. That reminds me, I was in Lyon one time at a fabric show, and I was given the most beautiful Leonard book...I wonder what happened to it? I believe he had a studio there. Lyon has a quite a history of textile artist and is one of my favorite cities.

    -Catherine

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  16. I am so glad that we all like Leonard! Many thanks all for your comments!

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