As one of the most influential stylists of his generation, Panos Yiapianis’ aesthetic is an intuitive extension of his own personal obsessions and interests; which he expresses in editorial commissions for the likes of AnOther, Love, Italian Vogue
As one of the most influential stylists of his generation, Panos Yiapanis’ aesthetic is an intuitive extension of his own personal obsessions and interests; which he expresses in editorial commissions for the likes of AnOther, Love, Italian Vogue and to his consultancies for Pringle, Cavalli and Rick Owens. Helping to translate his dark vision into one-off couture pieces specially crafted for his shoots is his 26-year-old studio director, Philly Piggott. She caught the fashion bug early, tagging along to her older brother, Marcus’ (one half of the photographic heavyweights, Mert & Marcus) shoots as a 12-year-old. As she recalls, “I liked it when you get a sense of a cinematic feel behind the stories. But it was always the clothes I was obsessed with.” After graduating with a BA in Womenswear from the University of East London, Piggott interned at Giles when an opportunity to assist Yiapanis came about. “I always thought his work was amazing,” confirms Piggott, citing a seminal shoot with Nick Knight for AnOther (A/W09's Clown editorial) as a defining moment for her. “His attention to details and textures is phenomenal and he has such a feel for subcultures. It was always different and unusual.” Perhaps there was an element of kismet in their meeting – after all Piggott’s BA collection was by her own admission, “quite Panos – dark and textured and based on my childhood home of Hastings.”
Downstairs at their Camden studio, she shows me the first piece she ever made for Yiapanis – a pair of heavily studded printed trousers that were made for a shoot with Willy Vanderperre for AnOther. Now two years into her role as head of Yiapanis’ atelier, Piggott leads a small team of interns and assistants in creating patent crowns for Kristen McMenamy and Lara Stone for Love magazine to intricately embroidered tights for a menswear shoot for Vogue Hommes. As her collaboration with Yiapanis deepens, Piggott keeps pushing forward, experimenting with new techniques and methods. “The longer we work together, I find that we’re definitely on the same wavelength – he’ll mention something and I’ll just pick up what he means. There’s always this freedom to try new, unexpected things.” While she dreams of one day having her own couture salon, Piggott relishes her unique role which allows her to indulge fully in her creative side. “I couldn’t dream of a better position to be in. I was never sure whether to go down the design or styling route and this has given me a perfect opportunity to keep both avenues open.”
