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Wednesday 22 February 2012

INTERVIEW| Patrick Grant, E.Tautz [Part One]


E.Tautz's Patrick Grant took the time post-show to discuss the "E.Tautz man", Saville Row tailoring, and what he feels is central to the brand's aesthetic. Here's part one of our interview with him.

VFS: Autumn/ Winter E.Tautz is very tailored, but in unpretentious way; as if you’re working a Saville Row skillset into the designs, as opposed to designing around the traditional “bespoke” template. Is this intentional?
Patrick Grant: Yes, very. I love tailored clothes- I always wear tailored clothes, but i like to wear different shapes, different sizes, and clothes that feel and look different. When we put these collectons together, really we were putting together a collection of clothes that I would like to wear. As for the way we work “Saville Row” into the clothes: we’ve got archives, we know how to cut, and we know how select materials that work, so ultimately, that’s how it filters into our pieces.

VFS: So, would you say E.Tautz is actively trying to change the perception of Saville Row tailoring?
PG: Ultimately what Saville Row is, is a bespoke world. What E.Tautz does is show a different way to wear something; a different way of wearing something simple and classic- like a single breasted jacket- but wear it in a way that feels different. That’s important to us, and that’s central to what E.Tautz does.

VFS: So, would there be a partcular individual that you have in mind when you design- or does the idea of “difference” related to the feeling that accompanies the clothes extend to the wearer; E.Tautz would be entirely open to an individual's interpretation?
PG: At the back of my head, yes- me. For me, clothes are really about mood, and season and prevailing attitude, because there needs to be variety in a wardrobe, and that’s what we try to cater for...
Part two coming shortly.

Interview by Sara McAlpine VFS Sub-Editor
Follow her @sara_mcalpine
Photographs by Natalia Ilina