New Frontiers: the interview with Jordan Bowen and Luca Marchetto by Jordanluca
Together they are the duo behind the British-Italian brand Jordanluca. On the occasion of the event organized by 10 Corso Como, the two founders told how they took their first steps, their vision and the friction behind their collections.
A crasis between 2 names. But the name Jordanluca does not enclose in one word only the names of the two founders for aesthetic reasons, it represents their affinity of taste which led them to found their brand in 2018. «We met eleven years ago, we were in line for the toilets of The Joiners Arms, a club in East London» says Jordan Bowen , British co-founder together with Luca Marchetto , of Italian origin. Their collections speak of feelings, dangerous pleasures, temptations and human instincts with a very precise and current temperament. A creative container with a vision of the present, a brand forged by the power of English countercultures that joins Italian savoir faire, attention to the environment and sustainable practices. Based in London, they take their first steps with menswear and then spontaneously introduce women too. At their shows and in their campaigns, their casting embraces all types of human beings with a scouting of individuals carried out on the streets of Belgrade, Warsaw and Naples.
L'OFFICIEL ITALIA: When did you realize you were interested in the fashion system?
JORDAN BOWEN: You know, when we first met we were already working in the fashion world, I was making hats for the English milliner Stephen Jones. My aunt used to be a stylist, she's now in Los Angeles, but she was a Blitz Kids in the 80s and she probably passed on this passion to me.
LUCA MARCHETTO: Jordan's education was fashionable right from the start, but I started with medicine, I studied in Padua and then I changed completely when I moved to Milan. At the time I fell in love with the Vivienne Westwood store. When we met it was pretty clear that we shared the same tastes and liked the same things.
JORDAN BOWEN: These two brands have similarities in terms of ideology and together we tried to study a look by making projects with some prints, a few hats and pants. It took us 4 years to find our dimension, then after the lockdown we presented the autumn winter 2022-23 fashion show with the first show in Milan and in June the spring summer 2023 collection. Today we present the collection with our partner at 10 Corso Como .
L'OFFICIEL ITALIA: What meaning do you give to your barbed rose?
LUCA MARCHETTO: For us the rose is something amazing and delicate. It was born at the last second especially for necklaces and then became a recognizable badge. It's sensual, sexual, and I like the feeling of danger that comes with wearing it. An accessory or detail that gives you power, makes you feel romantic and dark at the same time.
JORDAN BOWEN: It's definitely one of our trademarks. Our sharing of tastes is correct, then in our creative practice a factor of contrast often returns, a clash between elements that collide, and we try to give it a shape in our own way. During the lockdown period we looked for answers, we worked hard to understand who we are and we understood that it is as if it were a collusion or a friction. There is great synergy in our work, but we are also two distinct individuals.
L'OFFICIEL ITALIA: What is the relationship between the male and female universe?
LUCA MARCHETTO: We started this year with women, for the first time in January we presented a fashion show that was half man and half woman. Previously, there were pieces in the collection that could be translated from men to women.
JORDAN BOWAN: It was a natural process to arrive at creating the woman, last year we started thinking about introducing womenswear out of interest. Ours was more of a non-binary idea of both a man and a woman, I don't want to talk about genderless because I think it's a widely covered and boring concept. I don't like languages and appellations, I prefer to say that ours is a collection without borders.
L'OFFICIEL ITALIA: Do you have any designers of reference? What inspires you?
LUCA MARCHETTO: When I was in Italy I had designers of reference, since I moved to London, people have become my reference. After my working days I like to leave the studio early just to go and take the subway because it is congested with people. We really look at people more than designers, because designers steal and draw a lot from the street and London, even though it's changed a lot as a city. I lived in Milan for 8 years and when I moved to London I started seeing new things.
L'OFFICIEL ITALIA: I know that you have collaborated with mental health associations, why did you decide to take this direction?
JORDAN BOWAN: Because it's part of our history and it's where we are and where we come from. It's about embracing the moment, we spent a lot of time thinking especially during the lockdown where everything came to life and our problems came out, so we perceived the need to love ourselves. This is where we are and who we are, here and now. That's exactly what we hear. Always thinking about the future, we have never been used to living in the present, which is why we focused on our community and the people who surround us every day.
L'OFFICIEL ITALIA: What are your distinctive features in terms of products?
LUCA MARCHETTO: In addition to the roses, which have become super recognizable, the train on the trousers that has recalibrated the lower part of the silhouette of our Suffer Jeans, one of our bestsellers. We have also focused a lot on knitwear, a product category that is always present in our collections, and we have also experimented a lot with special treatments. We have created sweaters 3 times bigger than the result we wanted to achieve and with a shrinking process we have created unique specimens.
L'OFFICIEL ITALIA: What will be your next goals?
JORDAN BOWEN: We are working on collaborations with homewear brands that we will reveal with the next shows. One of these will have to do with a very Italian reality, and the other with a very British dimension. Once again it will be two extremely different universes that collide with each other and will assume their sense of coexistence.
