Dear Shaded Viewers,
I met Lamine Kouyaté in 1991, the year he founded his brand XULY.Bët . A few designers had large ateliers in a squat in Paris. Lamine Kouyaté was born in Bamako, Mali and moved to Paris in 1982. When Robert Altman made Pret a Porter in 1994 he asked Forest Whitaker to play the part of XULY.Bët in the film. That gives you an idea of the impact Lamine Kouyaté had in the early 90’s. When I was watching a Chloe collection designed by Karl Lagerfeld it was clearly inspired by the cut nylons signature of XULY.Bët.
XULY.Bët was sustainable long before it became the fashionable thing to be. He is best known for his recycled clothing, reshaping found garments by cutting, stitching and making modifications.
Later,
Diane
