Fashion

A Quick Q&A with Luca Lin and Galib Gassanoff of Act n°1

Jessica Michault,

If Vivienne Westwood and Haider Ackermann ever got together and had a fashion label love child it would probably look a lot like Act n°1, a nascent brand born out of the imaginations of designers Luca Lin and Galib Gassanoff. The duo won the prestigious  Who is on Next award at Altaroma in July of this year. The jury pointed to the successful way the Act n°1 collection was able to blend a myriad of disparate cultural references to produce a collection that was a chic and street melting pot.

Here Lin and Gassanoff talk about how they first got interested in fashion, their favorite emoji and Anna Wintour.

Q: How did you first get interested in fashion?

A – Galib: From my early childhood I liked to tell or develop the stories by drawing or sculpting. Later, during my teens, I discovered that  storytelling actually existed through the visual arts. And the closest to me was fashion. You can mix music, theater, fine arts and craftsmanship in one piece of clothing and tell whatever story you want or convey a message. I guess that’s why I have chosen fashion.

A – Luca: I grew up playing with my cousins in my aunts’ atelier. We were playing with samples or making some clothing for dolls and having a lot of fun. That influenced me a lot in my profession choice.

The finally of the Act n°1 show at AltaRoma in Italy where the brand won the “Who Is On Next” competition.

Q: What made you finally decide to launch out on your own and create your own line?

A: We were working a lot for other companies, we were putting all of our energy and creativity. We came to a point that  we weren’t learning anything anymore. That is when we decided to do launch our own brand.

A: What was your big break?

A: Winning ‘Who Is On Next’?

Images of the pre-fall Act n°1 collection.

Q: Who inspires you?

A: Everything and everyone around us can inspire us.

Q: Who living or dead would you love to be able to have dinner with?

A: Anna Wintour.

Q: What is your favorite trip?

A: South Italy, Puglia.

Q: When are you happiest?

A: Seeing the result of hard work.

Q: What is the biggest challenge you are currently facing?

A: Time. Organizing and controlling every part of the job and still keep working on different strategies, public relations, all this is very challenging.

A look from the Act n°1 pre-fall 2017 collection.

Q: What is your secret talent ?

A: Looking at everything from a different window, with a different approach.

Q: What is your motto or the best piece of advice you ever got?

A: Keep doing what you are doing until people to begin to look things with your eyes.

Q: What emoji do you use the most?

A: The heart emoji

Q: What is the latest Instagram feed you decided to follow?

A: Actually, It is you @jessicamichault

Jessica Michault is the Senior Vice President of industry relations at GPS Radar by Launchmetrics. She is also the editor-at-large for ODDA magazine and contributes to publications like the New York Times, the Business of Fashion, Vogue, Harper's Bazaar and Mixte magazine.

the writer

Jessica Michault

Jessica Michault is the Senior Vice President of industry relations at GPS Radar by Launchmetrics. She is also the editor-at-large for ODDA magazine and contributes to publications like the New York Times, the Business of Fashion, Vogue, Harper's Bazaar and Mixte magazine.

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