Noir (Q3527)
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Noir is a fashion house from FMD.
| Language | Label | Description | Also known as |
|---|---|---|---|
| English | Noir |
Noir is a fashion house from FMD. |
Statements
The line was founded two years ago by Peter Ingwersen, a Dane whose mission is to "create meaningfulness in the luxury segment." You hear a lot of hoo-ha these days about how this or that designer is going to save the world one anorak at a time, but this one is putting his money where his mouth is. Igwersen not only purchases goods that support sustainable businesses in developing nations (about 70 percent of the line was made from certifiable materials), but he's also developing a collection of organic cottons in Uganda. (The new fabric brand, called Illuminati II, is set to launch next year.)But, though virtuous, there is nothing crunchy or goody-two-shoes about Noir. We're not talking T-shirts here. In the past, in fact, Ingwersen—who wove in his new line of see-through lingerie on this week's runway—has skewed things a bit too far in the fetish direction. However, his Manhattan debut was reigned in, pared down, and precision-tailored.Ingwersen did what could best be described as Danish modern. Looking for a snappy white suit, dangerous micro mini, or a great shrunken bomber? He's your man. While the sleevelike leggings might be a fright on anyone but a lithe-limbed model and the big evening numbers sort of fizzled, several other after-dark looks (a shocking-pink party dress, a sensuous silken shirtdress, an elegant sequined cardigan) were elegantly effective.
7 September 2007
After three seasons showing in London, the meaning behind Peter Ingwersen¿s ¿Noir¿ has finally become clear. The name has nothing to do with the color black, necessarily, but there¿s always something perverse running through this show, and unfortunately, it's beginning to hold it back.Ingwersen, a Danish eco-activist who is developing a sustainable cotton farm in Uganda, seems overanxious to prove that humanitarian fashion can be sexy. Often, it crops up in the form of black leather among the otherwise sharp jackets and luxuriously crisp mannish cotton shirts that are Noir's strongest established staples. Until now, it hasn't been too difficult to avert one's eyes from the odd pair of leather trousers, but this season, Ingwersen's heavy-handed Weimar Berlin theme almost scuppered the show.It was conveyed with lashings of the usualCabaretcliché—butch ties, silk-and-lace lingerie, even a fetishy leather policeman cape. As for the flashy crystal-diamanté bras and buttons, and Baron von Richthofen jodphurs: No. They were laid on so insistently that the audience¿s goodwill could be felt draining from the room at every exit. And that¿s a major pity, because beneath it all, the clean, nicely tailored core of Noir isn¿t a dark and pervy proposition. The world is ready to equate eco-soundness with cool, and Ingwersen shouldn¿t be afraid to show his clothes without the distracting trappings of a heavy, and not very original, theme.
11 February 2007
Sexiness doesn't necessarily go with socio-eco responsibility. But with his Noir collection, Peter Ingwersen is out to prove otherwise. This Danish label is based on "clean" sourcing—from fairly traded African and organic cotton—and a bit of not-so-pure suggestiveness.In practice, that meant a contrast between well-cut riding jackets, menswear-influenced shirting, and second-skin latex leggings, gloves, and tops. It was all executed in black, white, red, and flesh, and pulled together around the middle with artsily constructed cummerbunds. If some of the styling staggered into a Scandi-fetish zone where few will dare to tread, somehow it didn't detract from the good thoughts in there.
17 September 2006
After an enthusiastic reaction from international buyers last season, Copenhagen's Peter Ingwersen packed up his avant-garde tailoring to stage his first show in London. His sharply focused and beautifully made second collection has echoes of Boudicca and the much lamented Helmut Lang. That's manna for women who crave a mean-cut pantsuit and an empowering way to play with the classic (but never dull) aesthetic of that other great Helmut, the late Mr. Newton.Of course, living up to the standards of that ultrasophisticated look is a tall order. Tight cutaway jackets, high-neck satin blouses, fine leather pants, and an astrakhan Poiret coat all cut the right silhouette: voluminous top, skinny leg. And the use of midnight blue with black hit a note of the season. Unfortunately the thin, wan 16-year-olds who struggled along the runway crippled by their heels distracted from clothes better suited to 6-foot-tall Nordic power-women. Production values aside, though, this is a collection that's already scoring a direct hit with customers on three continents.
16 February 2006