Nick Fouquet

In Nick Fouquet’s own words: “It’s a passion that became an obsession that became the business.” Growing up with five artistic sisters, Fouquet spent much of the early part of his life in admiration of what those around him manifested. It wasn’t until later on, near the back side of his twenties that Fouquet’s own creative quest first revealed itself, his fires stoked by what seemed an almost lost art and dormant accessory, the hat. From the get-go designing, Fouquet conjured the entire universe of the subject who would eventually rock his lids; what car they drive, what music they listen to, what food they crave, what lovers they chase, and gradually, a hat would emerge, hand crafted to the character’s flow and raison d’etre.

On his quest to master the craft, it was essential that the finished object be imbued with a hand-touched feel. Whether it be beaver, mink, hare, wool, or straw, the end result had to possess a pulse. Equally paramount for Fouquet, who never formally trained, is the idea that each and every hat represents a step in the evolution of his own creative pilgrimage. That said, Fouquet remains wary of formula. And almost never renders a preparatory sketch.

The hat begins when Fouquet lays hands on the felt, the subsequent shape a kind of living, sculpted document of inspiration, gestures, and impulses while engaged with the materials. To that end, Fouquet refrains from clocking current hat styles to avoid imitation, opting instead to seek inspiration in other mediums such as painting, sculpture, music, nature, the stich of a piece of furniture, adhering to his instinct that aesthetic authenticity is best expressed by transposing inspiration from a wide and varied array medium, so when a design finally lands, says Fouquet, he feels like he just discovered the moon. That said, an equally crucial element of Fouquet’s process is philosophical, that being the humility he retains, his ad hoc mantra and constant refrain being simple and direct, he is forever a student of the discipline, despite the fact he has come to enjoy quite significant critical and commercial validation.