Since Nix Lecourt Mansion won ANDAM’s Creative Label Prize in 2019, she’s become highly visible, not just as a designer at the vanguard of queer culture in Paris, but also as an influencer and model on Ford Models’ roster.
But her business has failed to keep pace. Since the outbreak of the coronavirus pandemic, she’s focused on custom orders and a handful of styles available on her e-commerce site, in addition to a collaboration with Jean Paul Gaultier last year on a bedazzled bodysuit that was worn by Madonna and Bella Hadid.
Signaling that she’s ready to crank it up a notch, Lecourt Mansion returned to the runway with a show that featured two gleaming Maseratis and a performance by Franco-Senegalese singer Thee Dian.
Titled “Revenge Look,” the collection was inspired by an incident where the designer was followed on the street, which resulted in her getting hit by a car when she tried to escape. “It’s a way to conceptualize and transform something disgusting into something beautiful,” she explained backstage, as a hair and makeup team stuck crystals to the corners of her eyes and straightened her hair.
As one of the few trans designers in the industry, Lecourt Mansion finds strength in sisterhood. Singer Christine and the Queens sat front row, while the cast included model Inès Rau, wearing a dress in the colors of the transgender flag, and pregnant singer Amel Bent, who gave Rihanna a run for her money in a figure-hugging pink dress with oval cutouts.
Lecourt Mansion’s style is sexy and unapologetic. Think denim dresses with corset stitching, slinky slips, and sheer ribbed dresses with large cutouts revealing glimpses of thong — part of a knitwear collaboration with sustainable brand Amca Oval. More gender-fluid offerings included pleated pajama sets, pinstriped tailoring and indigo jeans.
In what is emerging as a trend in Paris this season, the clothes were shown on a diverse cast, who telegraphed a powerful sense of community and pride. Building on Gaultier’s legacy, Lecourt Mansion is laying the foundations of an inclusive brand for a new generation. Now all she needs is some savvy backers.