EXCLUSIVE: Galib Gassanoff Launches Solo Brand Institution
MILAN — Galib Gassanoff is ready to open a new chapter in his career.
After parting ways with Act N.1 cofounder Luca Lin earlier this year, the designer is set to launch his solo fashion venture, dubbed Institution.
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The brand will debut as part of the official schedule of Milan Men’s Fashion Week, which will run from Jan. 12 to 16.
While he wanted to keep details of the creative direction under wraps, Gassanoff said that Institution will operate “as a socio-artistic organization with ethics in its fundament.”
The name itself is intended to mirror the project’s larger scope beyond fashion, as well as nod to the fact that “all definitions of institutions generally entail that there is a level of persistence and continuity.”
“I don’t want it to be just fashion. It will include motion art, music, objects, artworks, activism and collaborations. It’s a framework and a space where all these things will coexist. Of course I will start from clothes but then it will evolve and expand in different directions,” Gassanoff told WWD.
Eventually called to further elaborate on the apparel line, he teased that the range won’t target only women but “genders will coexist without stereotypes.” His focus will be more on working on volumes and design clothes “as sculptures,” favoring a subdued color palette of classic black and white in his seminal collection.
A sustainable approach will inform the brand, as Gassanoff said he’s committed to craft collections from natural materials and deadstock. “If not mandatory for a technical aspect, my wish is not to use anything synthetic,” he said. “And use leftovers of manufacturing processes of bigger brands, including leather that maybe has been dismissed for having little flaws but with the right placing and cuts can be repurposed in new garments.
“Of course, one could wonder how this can work when [scaling up] production, but for example satin is easy to find in stocks, and if there will be something peculiar in terms of material, that will mean that specific garment will be a limited edition,” he continued. “The idea is not to sell in masses, but create pieces that have a meaning and with a purpose.”
The goal is to focus on craftsmanship as well, with Gassanoff revealing greater attention on handmade techniques that could suggest a higher positioning of this brand compared to his previous label.
In truth, Act N.1 already offered the designer occasions to test couture-like approaches. Established in 2016, Lin and Gassanoff’s brainchild has always been best associated with the theatrical, maximalist creations crafted from tulle that never failed to elicit a “wow” reaction during the brand’s fashion shows. In tandem with the duo’s hybrid styles patching different pieces in one, a juxtaposition of masculine and feminine elements and a flair for deconstructed silhouettes, these dramatic pieces helped Act N.1 garner the attention of press and buyers alike over the years, as well as secure Maison Valentino’s support and celebrity endorsements from the likes of Beyoncé, Lizzo, Sharon Stone, Rita Ora and Keke Palmer, to name a few.
As reported, the Act N.1 founders mutually decided to part ways in February, after seven years of working together. Ever since, Lin has taken the solo lead of the Milan-based label, but it is understood that the two longtime friends and former business partners left on good terms, with Gassanoff attending the Act N.1 fall 2023 fashion show — the first since the split — and sitting in the front row.
The designers always worked in synergy, expressing their vision of multiculturalism with Act N.1, since their collections mixed stylistic influences hailing from their own origins — Lin is half Chinese and Gassanoff was born in Azerbaijan but grew up on the outskirts of Tbilisi, in Georgia.
“I was 20 and Luca was 21 when we launched Act N.1. The name itself referenced the fact that it was a beginning, our first step into fashion,” Gassanoff recalled. “Of course there was a huge part of me in the brand, but it was never specifically mine or Luca’s. We took all decisions together and in harmony. It was really the union of two worlds and two visions, eventually resulting into a third entity.
“This new chapter will be way more individual,” continued Gassanoff. “I will tell my story and ideas without taking into consideration the aesthetic of another person. It will be about expressing my inner world.”
This includes continuing to celebrate his roots through clothes but also implement social activities in support of local communities. To this end, Gassanoff teased that a handweaving technique that will mark Institution’s debut collection is reprised from his country’s carpet-making tradition. As the craft is at risk of being lost, the designer aims in the future to support the generational handover by involving local communities of women in the making of his collections, ensuring them work.
To better narrate all the different aspects converging into Institution, Gassanoff opted for a presentation format to mark its debut and Milan Men’s Fashion Week as the best timing. “During the women’s shows, there’s too much going on. I wanted to have time to talk with people and explain the story behind this new brand,” the designer said.
A first draft of the overall Milan men’s schedule will be revealed on Wednesday by Italy’s fashion chamber. So far, Etro has earmarked Jan. 14 to debut its new men’s tailoring collection, unveiling its first store exclusively dedicated to the line and the made-to-order service in Milan’s Via Montenapoleone. As reported, the fashion house will present its main men’s line in February, when it will stage a coed runway show during Milan Fashion Week.
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