Jean Charles de Castelbajac: “The rainbow is a tool to change the world”

“Nostalgia is a dramatic word… Benetton is back and looking into the future.”

It’s 9am and Jean Charles de Castelbajac is naturally still heady from Benetton’s first-ever show in Milan the previous evening. The designer, who has been known for his work at Iceberg and collaborations with everyone from the Pope (“my personal favourite, all dressed in the colours of the rainbow”) to Keith Haring, has now taken the reins of the family run business, that in its messaging and fashion was far ahead of its time. In an exclusive interview with Vogue India, Castelbajac talks about being a fashion rock star, a rainbow child, and why in his mind he is a millennial.

How are you feeling this morning?

My first collection was to put out a statement and a manifesto. My second, for spring, will be to work on the base. For the last 10 years, Benetton has travelled far away from its ideology and that’s what I want to bring back. When I spoke to Guliana Benetton, we talked about re-doing our sartorial atelier and focusing on the symbols of quality that Benetton is known for.

And that’s why you put the artisans centre stage, to really showcase the behind the seams so as to speak?

It was an emotional moment to be around the people who built the collection. As I took my bow, I saw tears in their eyes. The crown jewel of Benetton is their hard work, their savoir faire, and that’s what I would like to celebrate. I arrived at Benetton seven months ago, and my mission is not just to design clothes but to showcase the emotional connection that Benetton has.

And that it does. How do you harness that nostalgia and keep it relevant?

Nostalgia is a very dramatic word. I will say souvenir, because souvenir can be transformed into a positive rarity. Nostalgia is something that will never come back. Benetton is coming back. And Benetton is into the future now. I want Benetton becoming a visionary brand again. There is an opportunity on the market for that. On one hand, you have very expensive clothes from designers and expensive streetwear. And another side you have mass market. And in between a few conservative brands. Benetton has the opportunity to be creative, with a good price and quality.

You’ve been known for a career filled with collaborations. What has been your favourite so far?

My best collaboration was when I dressed the Pope. In 1997, it was very inspiring to create couture ornaments for the Pope, 500 bishops and 500 priests. All in the rainbow. I find the rainbow a tool to change the world. Because, when I dressed the Pope he told me “You have used the colour as a statement of face.” And in Benetton, I use colour as a statement of democracy, hope, and freedom. So this was my best collaboration.

Second best collaboration was with an artist called Keith Haring; he was a friend and we did a lot together. I want to do a number of collaborations with Benetton. Some in association with the eco system, with young athletes, capsules with older designers, and then maybe something with Michele Gaubert, to design the sound of our shops. They need to make sense. I want to make Benetton the number one storyteller.

What are the hallmarks of Benetton? What are you looking to focus on?

I want to catch the millennials. But not as the other brands dream to get to millennial paradise. No, millennials in mind. Today you can see people who are 80 years old and are millennials in their mind. We don’t have any more old and young people. We are the best example with Luciano Benetton and Oliviero Toscani… We are three millennials with the wiseness of our age. So we want to touch people who can reach the spirit of Benetton. And we can propose a lifestyle. My big dream in Benetton is that in five to six years, we don’t have just clothes. We have these carpets, you know; we have these lamps, we have these paint you can cover up the wall… we are proposing a lifestyle. Because there is no frontier today between art and fashion. No frontier between design and fashion, no frontier between architecture and fashion. It’s all one thing called style.

You’ve been in the industry for so many years….

Creativity, industry and tradition were in my blood. My father was a descendant of an old textile family. When I started, the industry was not an industry. It was sartoria; you know, the tradition of couture. And when I arrived in the ’70s, it was more of an industry and we were the young talent. Suddenly, my gang of Mugler, Montana; we were the rock stars. I would do shows in Japan in the 1970s with five other designers, two hundred models and an audience of 30,000. Then in the ’80s, things become particular. The industry started to understand that fashion was the way of developing luxury. And then the ’90s became the power of the houses. And we start to understand that perfumes can give huge turnover. Then came the digital. Many from my generation did not believe in digital. I became a fan of the digital very early. My sons told me, ‘Dad, you will have to be connected.’ So I get connected and it is like that I understood better maybe how times were changing. With digital, there is a direct consuming system. When you go to Instagram, you click and you can buy. Desire has become bigger, frustration has become bigger. And also social separation has become bigger between the rich and the poor. And we can never forget that beauty is not an exclusive system for rich people. So I think that the next step is the beginning of a conscience in fashion. It is a responsibility. In the ’70s fashion was all about “P”—price, positioning, publicity, power. Fashion now is about “E”. Ecology, experience, emotion, e-system. You cannot just sell to sell.

Scroll through the gallery below to take a look at Benetton’s latest collection.

Also read:

United Colors of Benetton’s latest line will feature works by Indian artists

Jean-Charles de Castelbajac joins United Colors of Benetton as artistic director

Why United Colors of Benetton’s provocative campaigns are still relevant