Interview: Francisco Costa from Calvin Klein

We accosted Francisco Costa in Milan and he gave us the 411 on his latest collection for Calvin Klein, which is, for the record, sublime. Although Calvin Klein can bring on sexy with the best of them, this season at NYFW the label presented a lady-like collection in pristine whites, slate and black. 

Alice Cavanagh: Hi Francisco, when did you arrive?
Francisco Costa: This morning.

How long are you here for? 
I leave tomorrow for Japan. 

You’re used to that, right? You’re a jetsetter.
Yeah, kind of…

What was the starting point for this collection? 
I wanted it to be really refined in terms of structure, and I wanted it to feel very dressy in a certain way. There were a lot of developments in the fabrics that were based on the work of Carsten Nicola — Carsten is this artist who I’ve worked with in the past — and he has this book called Index, which is a play on formulas on moiré patterns. How he works is really scientific and for me so much of his aesthetic is very minimal and intelligent. So we started developing fabrics that once they were superimposed had a very different aspect, like the moiré.

In terms of silhouette it was the continuation of fall, which is a mature woman, very sophisticated. The waist is still very important. Carolyn Bissette Kennedy was an inspiration — she was always very dressed up, but also quite casual. 

She was very Calvin Klein. 
Yes, I think she was. The collection here is her essence in many ways — in today’s world. She always dressed in great Japanese labels; there was this really cool vibe about her. 

I like how raw the finishes are, that gives it a tough edge. 
Yeah that’s to make it more ‘today’, a little more relaxed. The insides of the garments are very finished, though — there is nothing casual about that. The outside needed to have an almost, ‘who cares?’ character about it. I love that the more it is worn, the more character it will have. I love that idea. 

Thank you for your time.
Thank you. 

Alice Cavanagh