ON RUSSIAN DACHAS AND THE SEARCH FOR SAFEHEAVEN AND FREEDOM. An interview with Vincent Gregoire

At the Evteks Expo, we were fortunate to obtain an interview from Vincent Gregoire — the creative designer of the EVTEKS trend zone.

12.05.2016, Платные уроки

Vincent Gregoire, Lifestyle Director Nelly Rodi.

– Hello Vincent! We are very pleased to be talking with you once more at the EVTEKS fair. As we understand, the Nelly Rodi agency acts as the permanent curator for the EVTEKS trend zone. Can you please tell us a little about your company?

– The agency was founded by Mrs. Nelly Rodi in 1985. Prior to this, she has worked in the fashion industry for more than 30 years. Our general office is located in Paris, and we maintain another office in Japan. Last year, our company has celebrated its 30th anniversary. As for myself, I’ve been working for Nelly Rodi for 25 years — I became an employee of the agency as soon as I have finished my education.

We specialize on the fashion industry and the textile industry in particular, as Mrs. Nelly Rodi is a textile technologist by trade.

Our agency offers а full range of marketing services, which begin with the creation of designs, and end with their delivery to the consumers. We consider marketing to be just a big of a strength of ours, as our techniques and materials.

Trend zone, EVTEKS 2016

– What are your responsibilities within the agency?

– I represent our Lifestyle direction. A lifestyle is a little more than just fashion and design — I try to look at the whole picture of life from the position of unique design and architecture. It is the global experience accumulated by humanity in its entirety.

We create our concepts to be in harmony with everything that as a whole that takes place in a human life, and then communicate these concepts through trends, which we form in home textiles and fashion in general.

– What do you consider key for the concept of Lifestyle as of today?

– The entire experience accumulated by our humanity — that is exactly what forms the current trends and tendencies. The feelings that we experience while spending Christmas at home for instance, and everything that surrounds us at large.

In life, everything is interconnected. Our complete physical and emotional environment is what dictates us fashion and trends, not the other way around.

One of the trends – ethnic style. A mix of the elements of décor and ornamentation from different cultures.

– What would you say defines the lifestyle of a man today?

– A man, today, experiences quite a bit of pressure and stress from his surroundings, and it is quite vital for him to be able to maintain a relaxed atmosphere within and around himself while being at home. Each of us desires to experience comfort and a healthy environment, which in turn is ultimately created from the details that surrounds us — smells, tactile experiences, objects.

People crave novel and creative ideas, because everything today is becoming dull and overly serious, so we invite our clients to take a dive into their imagination and find an exit — an escape from boredom if you will.

Today many of us experience anxiety, as we are unsure of what tomorrow will bring us. Therefore, we yearn for that feeling of freedom within our homes, which we call upon to offset the pressures experienced by us from the outside.

This is in large, why we currently give so much attention to green hues in our work. Green in the color of life.

Festino

– Can you formulate in just a few words what you consider the basic principles of the modern man’s lifestyle?

– Escapism, freedom, comfort.

Modern man wants complete freedom inside his home — he wants to be able to do everything inside, which is forbidden outside of its borders. Hence, we encourage such freedoms in our interiors. Such changes of course, are characteristic of Europe and certainly not Asia.

Most of us are quite used to eating out, but men who cook themselves at home are not ridiculed either. This is a value, which comes from the heart, and while it seldom yields perfection, it is made with own hands, and I find this to be quite important.

People allow themselves to be creative, and that makes them happier in life. This is reflected in modern interiors, where we find more glamour, bold designs with little monkeys and such. People begin to mix more, the use of natural objects and glass becomes more and more popular for instance.

I feel that it is important not to be afraid of your own creativity — of bold mixing and unusual interior solutions. Any living space must be your personalized space, even if you rent, a type of personal seashell if you will. Today, we in large follow the standards of our external lives, but we need not forget to turn to our inner interiors…be rich internally. Perhaps this is why many attributes of wealth are becoming obsolete in modern interior design—internal wealth, this is what begins to gain importance with the modern man.

– You have noted that such changes are not prominent in Asian countries. What changes are prominent there?

– In China, for instance, there is a serious problem with ecology, so people are oriented on everything natural and organic. The modern interiors there focus either on comfort and minimalism, or on insane mixes in the Baroque style. People there, generally do not host many guests. The youth, however, begins to express their individuality more and more.

Natural materials, colors, rough textures. Exotic, tropical mix, floristic designs, birds and rampage of colors in the blend of ethnic motifs.

– What do you think of the current situation with textile fashion in Russia?

– I have recently collaborated with Leroy Merlin in Russia, and to my experience, the Russian audience today longs for brighter colors and varied textures. They are not afraid to express themselves, and not only in their dachas.

Maya Tekstil

– You know what a Russian dacha is?

– Yes, it is a place where a Russian man can do what he wants, and where he is not afraid to express himself. I have to say that I have seen quite the unbelievable and creative things at some of the Russian dachas. I believe, it has always been quite important for Russians to demonstrate their status, which in reality is much more than merely money — to a much larger extent, it is the expression of own style.

I find this search for individuality to be characteristic of modern Russia, where people are currently formulating a new set of national values for themselves. However, their trends are quite different from that of Europe and Asia too.

In Asia, the societies are focused on studying and researching traditional ideas, while in Europe, in large due to the current economic problems, there is a dire need to stimulate business, transforming its energy into style on the way. Because of that, I feel that in Europe, we are in a greater need for novel ideas and new dreams.

I have reflected this idea in the trend Bizarre Boudoir, in which we illustrate how various elements of a certain style can be mixed and matched with traditional designs.

– In general, do textile manufacturers and editors follow the ideas that you have just outlined? What has drawn your attention, as you have visited major textile exhibitions in the current year?

– We visit many exhibitions to obtain an adequate understanding of what goes on around us.

What we have observed at the latest shows, were emphasized surrealism in Baroque and bold artistic and zonal solutions for interior decoration. We saw less Scandinavian style, less innocence and pure color pallets. We saw more mixed and muddied hues, more saturation and power, as well as a trend for more pressing designs, but in a good way, if that makes any sense.

– For which exhibitions are you currently developing trends? Are you involved in the creation of trends for the Heimtextil Expo?

– If we are talking about the development of trends in Europe, it is only Maison&Objet. We do not work with Heimtextil — I do not want to induce unnecessary business competition, as we have been working with Maison&Objet for many years now. Outside of Europe, on the oher hand, I have more freedom in that regard. For a number of years we have been collaborating with the EVTEKS fair, and in this year we will also work with Intertextile Shanghai.

– Will you continue to follow the declared trends in the future?

– Yes, for the Intershanghai Textile, most definitely. We will utilize the declared trends of course, albeit a bit more adapted for the Asian market. For the Maison&Objet, which will take place this fall, I have prepared a special concept — House of games.

– Finally, our traditional question — what do you think of style in Russia?

– Unfortunately, as of today, there are no exhibitions in Russia for the luxury segment, but there is a strong interest for that style. I am quite surprised, that there is still a strong demand for gold and very shiny things among the Russian audience. I feel there is a need to introduce more subtleness, simplicity in forms, natural qualities, delicacy and elegance to the local tastes.

– Thank you very much for this interesting conversation Vincent. We hope to see you soon at the upcoming exhibitions.

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