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The Calais Museum of Lace and Fashion hosts a major retrospective honoring Indo-French fashion house Lecoanet Hemant
Lecoanet Hemant Atelier In Gurgaon, India. As the fashion landscape changed, it marked a new dawn in the brand’s trajectory. Lecoanet Hemant moved the business metaphorically, from couture to ready-to-wear, and also physically, from Paris to India.
“ An archive tells the brand story. For me, preserving Lecoanet Hemant creations has always been crucial. All our endeavors are rooted in the craftsmanship of couture and this exhibition allowed us to share it with the world”, notes Mr. Hemant Sagar. Lecoanet Hemant is the first Indian couture house to be honored with a retrospective exhibition by The Calais Museum of Lace and Fashion. "The Orientalists of Haute Couture: Lecoanet Hemant” unveils more than forty years of creations marrying the art of French couture with the spirit of the East. From the first creations produced by the house in its initial incarnation as a Paris-based haute couture house to the shift to ready-to-wear, more than 80 silhouettes underline the savoir faire synonymous with Lecoanet Hemant.
The House Of Lecoanet Hemant won a Golden Thimble Award, known as Le de d’or (the Oscar equivalent of Haute Couture) for their Spring Summer 1994 Show in Paris
Co-founders Didier Lecoanet and Hemant Sagar, both students of the Ecole de la Chambre Syndicale de Couture Parisienne, began the Lecoanet Hemant journey in 1981 with their first store in Rue du Faubourg Saint Honoré. The inaugural collection, in partnership with Cartier Haute Joaillerie, earned them the prestigious membership of Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne, the governing body of high fashion.
For nearly two decades, the house showcased their haute couture and ready to wear collections in Paris. The unusual amalgamation of east and west made Lecoanet Hemant the choice of French Aristocrats, Middle Eastern Royalty and International jet setters
The label was an organic reflection of their design philosophy. It was the coming together of their heritage, lived experiences and a common vision for authenticity. The house won the Golden Thimble known as Le de d’or (the Oscar equivalent of Haute Couture), the Swarovski Creation Prize 2005, and the Designer of the Year Award, Miami 2007. Select creations are now in the permanent collection at London’s Victoria and Albert Museum, Deutsches Museum, Berlin, and the Musée des Arts de la Mode, Paris and now find a home at the prestigious La Cité de la dentelle et de la mode de Calais.
40 years of the brand’s Indo French design legacy are presented as a retrospective exhibit at the Calais Museum Of Lace and Fashion till 31st December
The Calais museum has famously hosted legendary archives of the stalwarts of haute couture- from Cristobal Balenciaga and Hubert de Givenchy to more modern voices like Olivier Theyskens and Iris Van Herpen. The retrospective sheds a light on the house’s oeuvre through 8 bifurcations- marking distinct themes. From “India Pop” that speaks of the imagined world of a richly coloured, exotic India- bordering on the kitsch to the “Perfume of the Orient”, where sumptuous embroideries with metallic glint adorn elegant dresses, evoking a sensorial experience akin to the heady musk of frangipani and myrrh – each piece tells a unique story. To connect all collections from the very beginning to present day, was a herculean exercise but a pivotal one to trace the evolution of Lecoanet Hemant, also available for view at the brand’s official YouTube channel.
“The exhibition at Calais comes with a sense of acknowledgement. To share space with couture icons and be appreciated for our craft and vision by the museum fills us with pride and renewed energy. It has been heartwarming to meet old friends and patrons of the brand. We never really bid goodbye to France and this retrospective ignites new hope for the future.”, shares the duo.
Bringing the essence of the Parisian savoir faire to India in 2000, Genes was born out of a vision for merging modern and intelligent designs with Indian workmanship to reinvent signature classics for an urban wardrobe.
Genes is a modern story of expression, rooted in the Parisian heritage of Lecoanet Hemant and pillared by the codes of couture craftsmanship. Genes Stores embody the spirit of its people, of Lecoanet Hemant
Today, the painstakingly curated archive serves as an inspiration for the group of designers at Genes Lecoanet Hemant. Reinterpretation of not just artisanal couture techniques but also the house’s multi-cultural heritage is perpetuated through design of collections and stores alike. With the opening of flagship stores in Mumbai, Delhi and Chennai, the Genes tribe is offered a peek into the inner universe of the brand.
