Peter Copping is the New Artistic Director of Lanvin

This morning, the 135-year-old French fashion house Lanvin announced the appointment of British designer Peter Copping as artistic director for menswear and womenswear. Copping, a graduate of Central Saint Martins and The Royal College of Art, cut his teeth at Sonia Rykiel before spending over a decade as a number two to Marc Jacobs at Louis Vuitton. The designer then became the creative director of Nina Ricci and, later, Oscar de la Renta, a position that he was given by Mr. de la Renta himself. Up until today’s announcement, Copping was at Balenciaga. He worked as head of couture when the house reintroduced the collections, and later became head of VIP and special projects.

In a statement, the Deputy CEO of Lanvin, Siddhartha Shukla, said that Copping’s appointment “is an important milestone in the renaissance of one of the great French maisons.” He added, “I am confident that with Peter’s vision and technical rigor and the continued perseverance of our teams globally, we will identify a new frontier in fashion and deliver beauty and results in equal measure.” Copping’s career successes bode well for Lanvin, a label that has struggled to find its footing creatively and resonate with new audiences in the years since Alber Elbaz left the house in 2015.

Widely beloved in the industry for his kind and approachable disposition, Copping is a master tailor with a romantic sensibility that comes through in a myriad of references and of course, in beautiful, feminine designs. To understand his taste, one needs only to look at his perfectly curated Instagram, a feed filled with images of Robert Kime–decorated homes, Renaissance portraits, and old photographs of Queen Elizabeth II’s crown and Grace Jones smoking a cigarette.