Milan Fashion Week AW19: Meet Matthew Williams of Moncler Genius
Once Lady Gaga and Kanye's go-to creative, the man behind cult US brand Alyx is the latest to join the esteemed ranks of Moncler's Genius collective. Vogue heads to Milan for an exclusive preview of Matthew Williams' take on luxury sportswear
Since it was established in 1952, Moncler has become synonymous with down jackets as Burberry is with the trench coat or Hermes with silk scarves. But much like those brands, it wants to know more than its trusted goods-which is no surprise, its remarkable backstory given. Having started out as a sleeping-bag manufacturer in the mountain village of Monestier-de-Clermont (Moncler is a name of this name), it was transformed in 2013 by CEO Remo Ruffini, who built a thriving luxury-sportswear brand company we know today-as much as it is now
And the next chapter? Last February, during Milan Fashion Week, Moncler launched its Genius project-which Ruffini described as "a symposium of creative mindsand a inspiring place" -the company's Gamme Rouge (women's) and Gamme Bleu (men's) shows that guest-designed by the likes of Giambattista Valli and Thom Browne.
Instead, eight designers were invited to reinterpret Moncler's DNA In a cavernous Milanese hangar they simultaneously unveiled their theatrical presentations that played on loop. Simone Rochatransported us to a snowscape where models zig-zagged down the runway in airy creations embroidered with florals. Meanwhile, Valentino's Pierpaolo Piccioli brought a touch of reverential couture to his collection, arranging models in down gowns on a altar-like stage; artworks by monk Sidiv Fila The collection was released on a monthly basis ever since
On Wednesday 20 February, two new designers join the ranks. British wunderkind Richard Quinn (who was presented with Queen Elizabeth II Award for British Design by Her Majesty on the same day as the Moncler Genius show last year) and California native Matthew Williams of Alyx will show alongside the original eight.
"The collection is about authentically marrying the world of Moncler and the world of Alyx," Williams says, with the same matter-of-fact approach that defines his designs. Vogue came to meet the 33-year-old during fittings at the Moncler headquarters in Milan. The severity of his black leather trousers, liberally inked arms and military buzz cut are gloriously contrasted by his jovial manner
As the former creative director to Lady Gaga and artistic director to Kanye West, Williams is inextricably linked with both music and fashion. It's fitting then that some of the fabrics of his Moncler genius collection have an acoustic quality. "It's a happy coincidence," he says, as he arranges a jacket made of material on a model. Every gesticulation makes a whooshing sound that makes the spine tingle. "Some people love it, and some people are like, 'when is garment going to shut up?'"
Williams On his playlist is now a medley of contemporary hip-hop featuring Lil Gotit, Skepta, Playboy Carti and "A bunch of kids from Philadelphia that are really good" (Matt Ox and Lil Uzi Vert of the Production Collective Working on Dying).
But the relationship between fashion and music does not end there The seams of a frosted raincoat embossed with the Alyx logo have been sealed using ultrasonic welding. This manufacturing technique, more commonly used in the packaging industry, bonds materials together using high-frequency sound waves and pressure-just like the edge of the plastic folder you'd keep university lecture notes in Williams' approach to design is instinctive: "I'm not so strategic in that way where I'm thinking about the market or business trajectory," he says. "I'm honestly just making clothes that do not bore me. It's coming from a place of things that I want to wear, or I would like to see my wife or girlfriend. "
The "marriage" between Moncler and Alyx that Williams speaks of an invariably harmonious one, centering on technical innovation and bold fabrications. It is, after all, why Williams has decided to relocate his family from New York to Ferrara in northern Italy. "When I wanted to start my own brand, I realized that Italy was one of the only places in the world where I could make every category that I want to do, in the highest quality and with the best materials," he explains. "It's a great experience, being in our thirties and getting to learn about a new culture, a new place. And it's a great place for kids to grow up "Jennifer: Valetta and Alyx, after whom the brand is named.
The heavy metal buckles that have become a trademark for the designers are omnipresent on belts and even sandals. Semi-transparent fabric, the stuffing in a feature. T-shirt pattern offcuts have been spun in new yarn and used to make more T-shirts. But the hero of his genius is a pair of unassuming leggings. Created using seamless-knitting technology-a process that almost completely eliminates waste-the yarn itself is made from recycled fishing line. This idea of reduction is a consistent theme right down to Williams' boots, which is made from vulcanised rubber.
"We are not a 'green' company, nor do we claim to be," he says. "But it's our responsibility as designers to try and find solutions." Seamless knitting is time-consuming, he admits; "There are about 3,500 individual threads that go in each piece, and the machine can take at least one day to set up." But once it's going, "you're spitting out eight clothes every half-hour on each side. It is really the future of knitwear The future of making clothes. "
Sustainable fashion may be an oxymoron, but Williams identifies quality, and so the longevity of a garment, as key to reducing the effect "Making something that lasts for decades, that's the ultimate goal," he says. "And I think that's what we're doing here."
Since it was established in 1952, Moncler has become synonymous with down jackets as Burberry is with the trench coat or Hermes with silk scarves. But much like those brands, it wants to know more than its trusted goods-which is no surprise, its remarkable backstory given. Having started out as a sleeping-bag manufacturer in the mountain village of Monestier-de-Clermont (Moncler is a name of this name), it was transformed in 2013 by CEO Remo Ruffini, who built a thriving luxury-sportswear brand company we know today-as much as it is now
And the next chapter? Last February, during Milan Fashion Week, Moncler launched its Genius project-which Ruffini described as "a symposium of creative mindsand a inspiring place" -the company's Gamme Rouge (women's) and Gamme Bleu (men's) shows that guest-designed by the likes of Giambattista Valli and Thom Browne.
Instead, eight designers were invited to reinterpret Moncler's DNA In a cavernous Milanese hangar they simultaneously unveiled their theatrical presentations that played on loop. Simone Rochatransported us to a snowscape where models zig-zagged down the runway in airy creations embroidered with florals. Meanwhile, Valentino's Pierpaolo Piccioli brought a touch of reverential couture to his collection, arranging models in down gowns on a altar-like stage; artworks by monk Sidiv Fila The collection was released on a monthly basis ever since
On Wednesday 20 February, two new designers join the ranks. British wunderkind Richard Quinn (who was presented with Queen Elizabeth II Award for British Design by Her Majesty on the same day as the Moncler Genius show last year) and California native Matthew Williams of Alyx will show alongside the original eight.
"The collection is about authentically marrying the world of Moncler and the world of Alyx," Williams says, with the same matter-of-fact approach that defines his designs. Vogue came to meet the 33-year-old during fittings at the Moncler headquarters in Milan. The severity of his black leather trousers, liberally inked arms and military buzz cut are gloriously contrasted by his jovial manner
As the former creative director to Lady Gaga and artistic director to Kanye West, Williams is inextricably linked with both music and fashion. It's fitting then that some of the fabrics of his Moncler genius collection have an acoustic quality. "It's a happy coincidence," he says, as he arranges a jacket made of material on a model. Every gesticulation makes a whooshing sound that makes the spine tingle. "Some people love it, and some people are like, 'when is garment going to shut up?'"
Williams On his playlist is now a medley of contemporary hip-hop featuring Lil Gotit, Skepta, Playboy Carti and "A bunch of kids from Philadelphia that are really good" (Matt Ox and Lil Uzi Vert of the Production Collective Working on Dying).
But the relationship between fashion and music does not end there The seams of a frosted raincoat embossed with the Alyx logo have been sealed using ultrasonic welding. This manufacturing technique, more commonly used in the packaging industry, bonds materials together using high-frequency sound waves and pressure-just like the edge of the plastic folder you'd keep university lecture notes in Williams' approach to design is instinctive: "I'm not so strategic in that way where I'm thinking about the market or business trajectory," he says. "I'm honestly just making clothes that do not bore me. It's coming from a place of things that I want to wear, or I would like to see my wife or girlfriend. "
The "marriage" between Moncler and Alyx that Williams speaks of an invariably harmonious one, centering on technical innovation and bold fabrications. It is, after all, why Williams has decided to relocate his family from New York to Ferrara in northern Italy. "When I wanted to start my own brand, I realized that Italy was one of the only places in the world where I could make every category that I want to do, in the highest quality and with the best materials," he explains. "It's a great experience, being in our thirties and getting to learn about a new culture, a new place. And it's a great place for kids to grow up "Jennifer: Valetta and Alyx, after whom the brand is named.
The heavy metal buckles that have become a trademark for the designers are omnipresent on belts and even sandals. Semi-transparent fabric, the stuffing in a feature. T-shirt pattern offcuts have been spun in new yarn and used to make more T-shirts. But the hero of his genius is a pair of unassuming leggings. Created using seamless-knitting technology-a process that almost completely eliminates waste-the yarn itself is made from recycled fishing line. This idea of reduction is a consistent theme right down to Williams' boots, which is made from vulcanised rubber.
"We are not a 'green' company, nor do we claim to be," he says. "But it's our responsibility as designers to try and find solutions." Seamless knitting is time-consuming, he admits; "There are about 3,500 individual threads that go in each piece, and the machine can take at least one day to set up." But once it's going, "you're spitting out eight clothes every half-hour on each side. It is really the future of knitwear The future of making clothes. "
Sustainable fashion may be an oxymoron, but Williams identifies quality, and so the longevity of a garment, as key to reducing the effect "Making something that lasts for decades, that's the ultimate goal," he says. "And I think that's what we're doing here."
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