Andrew Gn described his fall collection as a “tribute to migrations.” Needless to say, he wasn’t referring to the thousands of desperate people fleeing war-torn regions, like the refugees from Ukraine that are in the headlines, but rather his personal history as a Singapore-born designer based in Paris.
Gn left home at 20 to study fashion at Central Saint Martins in London. After stints in New York and Milan, he settled down in the French capital in the ‘90s and has grown his label independently ever since.
In recent months, he’s dressed everyone from Lady Gaga to Taraji P. Henson and Faith Hill. But the designer has never lost sight of his roots — nor has he forgotten the pieces of batik fabric that his mother, who is half-Japanese, half-Peranakan, tucked into his suitcase as a keepsake.
“She would always use batik or kimono fabric and make it into suits, make it into Western dresses,” he recalled. “In the old days, people would bring seeds from home, and they would start growing the seeds in the new land. This is a collection which is a tribute to all that.”
Gn didn’t literally reprise those patterns in his lineup. Instead, he freely mixed all the elements that have influenced him. Silk satin dresses came in a chintzy floral photo print inspired by his grandmother’s antique Limoges vases. Pleated dresses, both long and short, featured his signature chrysanthemum motif.
Sculptural shoulders amped up the glamour of belted minidresses, and gave a stately quality to a scarlet evening dress with fern-inspired embroidery. Alongside his customary palette of jewel tones, Gn worked a gunmetal gray that looked particularly good on a cape dress trimmed with hand-braided and knotted fringe.
The trimmings were opulent, from the brooch-shaped jeweled fastenings on a purple coat to the oversize cameo brooches, featuring a centurion’s profile, on pearl-trimmed blouses, evening gowns and coats. From his melting-pot trajectory, Gn has crafted his own unique aesthetic. His faithful followers will no doubt identify.
