Nicolas Vaudelet Spring 2009
Nicolas Vaudelet Spring 2009

MADRID, Oct 8, 2008 / FW/ — With references to the 19th century Orientalists, men of the desert and Mozarab ornamentation, Nicolas Vaudelet chose Al-Mu’tamid as his muse during Al-Mu’tamid’s exile in the lands of Marrakech, dreams of the years of his reign in Seville.

Two lines make up the color palette: on the one hand, whites, blacks and flesh colours blended with silver details and, on the other, the acid colors of mudejar tiles.

The silhouette comprises harem trousers, extra-long drainpipes which crease at the ankle and fallen jodhpurs. Dervish, naiad and saruel skirts. De-structured, draped, stretched jackets. Jellabah tunics, Moorish capes, Safari shirts, caftans, printed blouses, Vichy shirts, long shirts with berber hoods.

Natural materials such as cashmere, silk, linen and cotton were the fabric of choice while vegetable tanned leather is used in a primitive manner, a handmade luxury.

The collection is complemented with oversize Tuareg bags, satchels inspired by camel saddlebags and layered bags with the edges painted in bayadere stripes. Stiletto-heeled mules like foot cases in wild silk and latticework babouche slippers.

Nicolas Vaudelet was born in Brittany in 1977. In 1994, he moved to Paris and began his studies at the Met de Penninghen et Jacques d’Andon Advanced College of Graphic Arts.

In 1997, he joined Christian Lacroix’s haute couture studio, a decisive experience for Nicolas which awoke in him his passion for the art and music of Spain. His work at the haute couture firm focussed on studying embroidery and prints and on seeking iconography, during which the designer’s crucial discovery of Velázquez, Murillo, la Zarzuela and la Copla occurred.

A year later, Nicolas joined Dior, also in the haute couture studio.In 1999, he moved to Louis Vuitton, where he took his first steps in prêt-à-porter.

The year 2000 was another decisive moment in Nicolas’ career; he joined Givenchy. It was here that he truly ratified his position in the design of fur and leather goods. He assimilated a very specific style which merges classic details and finishes, such as fasteners and hand backstitching, with more modern volumes.

Jean Paul Gaultier signed him up as an accessory designer, both for haute couture as well as for commercial lines. In this latter and more recent stage, Nicolas learned from the «Enfant Terrible» an eclectic style, where everything is design and inspiration emerges from anywhere. In conjunction with him, he developed Madonna’s wardrobe for the «Confession Tour» and the wardrobes for the dancer Joaquín Cortés, his musicians and the flamenco singers in his shows.

Nicolas Vaudelet joined the hundred-year-old centenary trademark from Seville El Caballo in early 2007 within the «renewal without losing its essence» strategy which the company is implementing.

Attracted by Spanish culture from the time he spent at Lacroix, the designer recognises in El Caballo «a luxury firm with great potential which combines classic and more modern codes. Since he joined the firm as the creative designer, he has already presented two collections, «Hispalis» (spring–summer 2008) and «Don’t call me Margarita, call me Rita» (autumn-winter 2008-09).

Photos courtesy of Cibeles Madrid Fashion Week