Life & Death
The two designers behind Antik Denim are at it again.
Philippe Naouri and Alexandre Caugant are launching a new line of tops, dresses and knits that is completely separate from the contemporary blue jeans company they joined two years ago in Los Angeles.
The French duo have teamed with artist Cynthia Tello, whose graphic designs have a certain biological feel to them, to start Life & Death. The Spring/Summer 2007 collection debuts in late August at the Project Global Trade Show, the primarily contemporary menswear trade show in Las Vegas held at the same time as MAGIC Marketplace.
“This line is going to be more couture,” said Naouri, who has been with Antik Denim since it was launched by denim guru Paul Guez in 2004. “Antik has become like a famous brand sold at large department stores, and we want this brand to be more elitist.”
The idea behind Life & Death started when Tello attended an Antik Denim fashion show at Smashbox Studios during Los Angeles Fashion Week last March. “I saw what they were doing was different and edgy, and it fit with what I wanted to do,” said Tello, who graduated in 2000 from Woodbury University in Burbank, Calif., after studying art for four years.
So Tello e-mailed the blue jean designers to pitch some ideas about T-shirts with her distinctive designs that blend anatomy with biology. Caugant, who was looking for a good graphic designer, responded.
After their meeting, Naouri and Caugant felt the concept was better as a separate company as opposed to an addition to Antik Denim. After getting clearance from Guez to start their own small company while remaining at Antik, the trio launched Life & Death two months ago.
Right now, the small company is starting with predominantly Tshirts and tops of soft cotton and vintage cotton fabric made in Japan or the United States. Samples are being made in the company’s 11th floor downtown Los Angeles studio, which used to be Naouri’s residence until he moved to a bigger home.
The line’s distinctive quality will be Tello’s designs, which she sketches in watercolor before putting them into her computer. The elaborate sketches are partly inspired by Italian artist Leonardo da Vinci and his drawings. Other design ideas come from biology books on insects and plants.
“The concept is to mix life and death on a T-shirt,” Naouri said, pointing to a sketch that had a picture of a bone next to tree branches.
Embellishments will include glass and bone buttons and hemp accents. There will be 130 different styles, with colors ranging from a vintage-washed pink or green or lavender to beige, white and black.
Wholesale price points for basic T-shirts will range from $24 to $27. Better T-shirts and knit dresses will be from $45 to $105.
Scarves and shoes also will be a part of the upcoming Spring/ Summer line. Eventually, Naouri said, the dream is to take Life & Death and extend it into a lifestyle brand. —Deborah Belgum
