‘There’s so much beauty out there. Is there still something we can do?’ Dries Van Noten asked when we spoke to him last year, ahead of his beauty line debut. ‘For me, the answer was yes, we can tell a different story. Because with my fashion collections, I am a storyteller. My clothes make you feel certain associations and connections, because I work with all those contrasts, all those opposites.’
Now, Van Noten is translating that same storytelling ethos into his first-ever beauty store. In fact, part of what drew him to the space on Quai Malaquais was its storied past. Located along the Seine, directly across from the Louvre, the elegant red brick and limestone building was constructed in 1625 for the Prince of Transylvania. It was later sold off to a minister who – so the story goes – was having an affair with the then-queen of France and met her covertly using a secret tunnel between what is now the Dries store and the Louvre. Fast forward to the 1920s and the space became a groundbreaking gallery, showing the work of upstart artists like Chagall and Picasso.
These stories are the first thing Van Noten tells me when I visit him at the store ahead of opening day, and they are clearly what has informed the space’s blended design of a classically French apartment and a showroom for objet d’art. ‘When we were redoing the store we really wanted to bring all the connotations back to classic Paris,’ Van Noten says. ‘With a kind of boudoir vibe and [elements like] alabaster throughout the space, which is specifically inspired by the city’s perfume stores in the 1920s, 30s and 40s.’
That ambience is created through a combination of antique and modern details: clean white walls and burnished gold display cases are surrounded by silk curtains and plush velvet settees. Elsewhere, a terrazzo marble floor is offset by a funky 1970s-esque chandelier made from Venetian glass.
As with all Van Noten designs, every detail of the store has been meticulously considered. Plaster elements, like a wall hanging of a fragmented bust, are a reference to the art school behind the store, while a large tapestry from 1630 (Van Noten’s favourite feature) hangs against the back wall and depicts an infinity mirror effect of gardens framed by columns.
‘We bought it at an auction in Paris last year,’ Van Noten says. ‘Its design is inspired by the work of a Dutch-Belgian artist who was experimenting a lot with drawings and buildings where you change the perspective, which you see here with the columns.’
‘And one thing that I really like,’ he continues,‘ is that on both sides of the tapestry you have these columns, and when you go outside you also have columns on either side of the store, and then between this store and the men’s store outside you have another set of even bigger columns… so it feels like it belongs here.’
Although the store is relatively small, the space feels varied and expansive, in large part because it is divided into sections – one area focuses on the lipsticks, another the fragrance and, dividing them both, a display case featuring accessories. It is both impressive and welcoming, eschewing the cold and intimidating atmosphere of many other luxury shops.
One other unique element of the space is a small, darkened gallery space tucked away towards the back of the store. With its low ceilings and black walls, this ‘archive room’ is a sombre and meditative chamber compared to the bright white and yellow space outside. Inside it is a rotating array of pieces from the Dries Van Noten archive which, in this museum-like context, can be appreciated as the precious objects they are.
So what’s next for Dries Van Noten Beauty? ‘We are preparing some more launches in 2024,’ says Van Noten. ‘There are going to be a few more perfumes and some more beauty products – it will continue to be a range that grows. That’s also the idea of the store, that it is a place where we can meet and experiment, do things in the very special way we like to do it.’
