Meet Pia Lepoutre

Conscious French designer and founder of the brand Del Carmen

Meet Pia Lepoutre - illustration 1

 Portrait of Pia Lepoutre wearing one of her creations in collaboration with brand Ganni

Pia Lepoutre created the upcycled clothing brand Del Carmen in 2018. Based in Paris, the young designer strives to promote ethical and responsible fashion through her creations, which she considers proper works of art. Lepoutre successfully blends tradition into modernity; she uses Sashiko, an ancestral Japanese embroidery technique, and decorative patchwork in her unique designs. This interview will convince you of one thing: nothing is lost, but everything is transformed!

1. Hello Pia! You're an entrepreneur and founded Del Carmen, your clothing brand, in 2018. How did you come up with this idea? And which women designers inspire you?

I've always wanted to create my own clothing brand to be able to express myself fully through my creations - it's very cliché but in high school I was already sketching ready-to-wear clothes! I'm not inspired by particular women designers, but by colors, materials, paintings... basically by everything that surrounds me in general.

2. Through your brand, you promote conscious, ethical and responsible consumption. What is your point of view on the current textile industry and its impact on the environment?

This is such a big subject... I'm appalled by its ecological impact, but also and especially by its human impact. We tend to forget what we can call modern slavery, but it's well and truly present behind these big names of fast fashion. This is why I feel like an actress of change, on a small scale of course, but I think it's necessary to have a mission when our convictions are well anchored. My mission today is to try to make things happen in this industry. To make waste look sexy by creating unique and timeless pieces, to show that we just have to reuse the old to make new; nothing is lost, but everything is transformed.

Meet Pia Lepoutre - illustration 1
Meet Pia Lepoutre - illustration 1

  On the Left: Close up on a fabric mixing Sashiko and patchwork. On the Right: A portrait of Pia Lepoutre in her studio.

3. The denim pieces you create are the result of the incredible marriage of patchwork and Sashiko, an ancestral Japanese embroidery technique. Why did you choose this original combination? According to you, is it important to understand the past in order to innovate?

Decorative and artistic patchwork is very recent, but initially the birth of patchwork is similar to that of Sashiko. The first one allowed people to make inexpensive clothes with recycled fabrics, and the second one allowed people to patch their clothes themselves, if they couldn't afford to have them tailored. These are two popular and artisanal techniques that have become modern art today. It's very important for me to understand the past in order to innovate, not only in the field of fashion or art more widely, but in all fields. Indeed, knowing the past allows us to reclaim our own history by improving or modifying actions, techniques, processes... Understanding the past leaves room for evolution.

4. Del Carmen is strongly influenced by urban culture, while advocating an ancient and artisanal know-how... If you could travel in time, which period of art history would you choose to discover?

That's a very good question! It's hard to answer, but I think I would dive into the 18th century, in the Classicism and Baroque period. I love painting and I'm always impressed by the talents of this era. I would then transport myself to the 19th century, to meet Van Gogh and Monet!

Meet Pia Lepoutre - illustration 1
Meet Pia Lepoutre - illustration 1

On the Left: André Derain, “Arlequin et Pierrot," 1924. On the Right: A beach in El Salvador, Pia Lepoutre's home country.

5. Your creations are unique pieces, as are works of art. Why this choice? Can you tell us more about the place that art takes in your life?

Precisely because I consider my creations as works of art! I love art in all its forms, and I am especially sensitive to colors. I like paintings or photographs that transport me and make me travel. I like to put myself in the artist's shoes: what did they want to transmit? How did they come up with their work? I have as many questions as I do emotions, that's why, for me, art is essential in our lives. It allows us to escape, to dream but also and above all, to understand humanity and its history.

6. You recently collaborated with Ganni, a very fashionable responsible clothing brand. Do you have any other event projects in the works?

Yes I have other projects, I like to be stimulated and in constant motion! Designing my own collections and collaborating with brands are two different things but they both contribute to my personal, artistic and financial balance.

7. Finally, what is the place that inspires you the most in the world?

I think the place that inspires me the most in the world is El Salvador, my home country. Going there allows me to recharge, to go back to my roots, to free myself... It gives me such strength that my mind frees itself from its creative or emotional barriers.


Their favorite artworks

Photography, Mama - Red smoke, Pieter Bauermeister

Mama - Red smoke

Pieter Bauermeister

Photography - 118 x 84 x 1 cm

$2,372

Photography, Miao Girls, Sean MacLeod

Miao Girls

Sean MacLeod

Photography - 100 x 100 x 1 cm

$1,694

Painting, De face, Kalus

De face

Kalus

Painting - 60 x 73 x 3 cm

$565

Photography, Young falcon, Deloun Highlands, Olgii Province - Mongolia, Hamid Sardar

Young falcon, Deloun Highlands, Olgii Province - Mongolia

Hamid Sardar

Photography - 42 x 59.4 x 3 cm

$1,558

Photography, Bamako années 60 - 70, Malick Sidibé

Bamako années 60 - 70

Malick Sidibé

Photography - 30 x 24 cm

Sold

Painting, The ballet angels, preparing for flying, Serghei Ghetiu

The ballet angels, preparing for flying

Serghei Ghetiu

Painting - 80 x 65 x 2 cm

Sold

Painting, Yellow Lines, Maxwell Boadi

Yellow Lines

Maxwell Boadi

Painting - 88.9 x 114.3 cm

$2,146

Photography, Papi's long wait, Izmir, Carlos Pericás

Papi's long wait, Izmir

Carlos Pericás

Photography - 18 x 13 cm

$186

Painting, Calm Morning, Olivier Philippe

Calm Morning

Olivier Philippe

Painting - 80 x 80 x 2 cm

$621

Painting, After the Storm, Sunset Beach , CA, Lisa Ford

After the Storm, Sunset Beach , CA

Lisa Ford

Painting - 40.64 x 50.8 cm

$1,355

Painting, Plage du Crouton 1, Jean-Jacques Venturini

Plage du Crouton 1

Jean-Jacques Venturini

Painting - 81 x 100 x 3 cm

Sold

Painting, L’eau de là, Meskar

L’eau de là

Meskar

Painting - 80 x 80 x 2 cm

Sold

Painting, The lonely place, François Foucras

The lonely place

François Foucras

Painting - 80 x 80 x 4 cm

$1,773

Painting, Against the sun, Barbara Hubert

Against the sun

Barbara Hubert

Painting - 100 x 120 x 3 cm

$1,920

Painting, An usual day in Tibet, Serghei Ghetiu

An usual day in Tibet

Serghei Ghetiu

Painting - 65 x 80 x 2 cm

Sold

Painting, Cambodge - Série Paysage de Rizière, Marie-Thérèse Chanel

Cambodge - Série Paysage de Rizière

Marie-Thérèse Chanel

Painting - 61 x 73 x 2 cm

Sold