“I’ve always been fascinated by the emotional story of the materials we use,” Greg Lauren says, calling from California’s Pacific Coast Highway. The designer has made a name for himself utilizing deadstock and deconstructing Americana classics. This month, he will launch his first women’s ready-to-wear capsule in collaboration with Gee’s Bend, the Alabama-based quilting artists who are direct descendants of the generations of slaves who worked the cotton plantation established in 1816 by Joseph Gee. “I became very committed to this idea of examining some of the inspirations: Where do they come from?” Lauren says. “As designers, we see things, we’re inspired by them, we use them, and often feel that it’s enough to say we’re inspired by something. That is not enough.” In researching the art of quilting, Lauren gradually connected with the original artists. As part of the partnership, Lauren sent fabric deadstock to 14 quilters in Alabama, who selected materials and developed 276 panels over the course of several months that were then collaboratively designed into the pieces you can find on sale at Bergdorf Goodman now, in store. “We sent tweeds, performance fabrics, vintage fabrics from army tents, denim, everything we had,” Lauren muses. “This is a moment where there has to be a new model and way of doing things. If we are working with a community of artists, there needs to be a new way where the focus is on proper attribution, proper consent, and, most importantly, proper financial contribution.” As such, 100 percent of the profits will go to the community. “This one was fueled by a joy that comes from a true collaboration and relationships that were built in an organic, authentic process,” he says. “There is mutual hope we can continue this. We’ve built this model. Now the next step is: How do we do this?”
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