Black Magic Man

Thought Diesel Black Gold is all about rocker-chic and distressed leather? Meet Andreas Melbostad, the designer who’s changing the brand.

- Varun Rana

WHILE DIESEL’S JEANS HAVE RULED the denim market since the brand’s launch in 1978, its premium label, Diesel Black Gold (launched in 2008), has just as quickly carved a niche for itself. First, under the directorship of Greek designer Sophia Kokosalaki, it made waves with its rock-chic vibe, using distressed leathers and chain embellishments to upgrade basic denims into party must-haves. After her departure in 2012, the baton passed to Andreas Melbostad, a graduate of London’s Royal College of Art. With his Fall 2016 collection, he has changed the face of a brand that was almost solely associated with ripped jeans and studded biker jackets.

Barely into his fourth year at DBG, Melbostad sent out clothes that not only celebrated the Italian brand’s obsession with rock, but also incorporated his own love for detail and construction. “There are layers of embroidery and leather on a particular pair of denim palazzos, and the shapes are simpler,” he says. There are parkas that wouldn’t be out of place in a nightclub, and bombers that you could wear to a boardroom. Gone are the ripped and pre-faded jeans that recalled rebellion; they’ve been replaced with superbly proportioned wide pants paired with quilted, zippered tops inspired by varsity jackets.