When designer Jean Paul Gaultier resigned from the fashion industry, an exciting period with changing creative directors followed each season. That ship has sailed now, with the appointment of Dutch designer Duran Lantink as the house’s new creative director. Cover image: Walter Pfeiffer for Jean Paul Gaultier
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DURAN LANTINK APPOINTED CREATIVE DIRECTOR AT JEAN PAUL GAULTIER
Duran Lantink, the Dutch designer known for his radical upcycling and gender-fluid silhouettes, has been appointed as the new creative director of Jean Paul Gaultier. This marks a significant shift for the iconic French house, which has operated under a rotating guest designer model since Gaultier’s retirement in 2020. Lantink’s appointment signals a return to a singular creative vision.
REINVENTION AT ITS FINEST
Born in The Hague in 1987, Duran Lantink was raised by his single mother, a rave enthusiast with a circle of drag queen friends. From an early age, he exhibited a penchant for fashion, often repurposing his mother’s Jean Paul Gaultier and W< outfits into new creations for himself. “I got my butt kicked for it, but it was an obsession,” he recalled in an interview with W Magazine. This early experimentation laid the foundation for his future in fashion. He later honed his craft at Amsterdam’s Gerrit Rietveld Academie and the Sandberg Institut, graduating in 2013 and 2017.
THE BIG BREAKTHROUGH
Duran Lantink’s breakthrough came in 2018 when he designed the now-iconic “vagina pants” worn by Janelle Monáe in her “Pynk” music video. Since then, his work has been characterized by a commitment to sustainability, often repurposing deadstock fabrics and pre-existing garments into new designs. Established in 2019, his brand is known for its ever-evolving, conscious collections, merging pre-loved pieces, deadstock, and sustainable materials. Lantink’s innovative approach has earned him several awards and prizes, including the Andam Special Prize in 2023 and the Karl Lagerfeld Special Jury Prize from LVMH in 2024. In 2025, he won the International Woolmark Prize, further cementing his status in the fashion industry. His designs have been showcased in Amsterdam and Paris, with notable presentations and shows at Paris Fashion Week, where he debuted his SS23 collection featuring 39 looks that combined three-dimensional sculpting techniques with traditional craftsmanship.
A NEW ERA FOR JEAN PAUL GAULTIER
Lantink’s appointment as the creative director of Jean Paul Gaultier marks a new chapter for the iconic house. His aesthetic and commitment to sustainability align with Gaultier’s legacy of boundary-pushing design. Jean Paul Gaultier has expressed confidence in Lantink: “I see in him the energy, audacity, and playful spirit through fashion that I had at the beginning of my journey: the new enfant terrible of fashion.” Lantink: “I consider Jean Paul Gaultier a genius and part of a generation that kicked down doors so people like us can walk through them freely and be who we are without apologizing. Stepping into the role of creative director is a true honor.” Lantink’s first ready-to-wear collection is set to debut in September 2025, followed by his inaugural couture collection in January 2026.
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