Nice Encounters: Garance

It was a summer Saturday in the south of France; when I saw Garance arrive at that party for a few that later became for many, I made an effort to resist the childish spontaneity that invaded me. The urge was to ask: do you want to be my friend?

The night had been beautiful. During the party, Victor and I sang about our nostalgia for Bahia in that happy and unprepared way that no rehearsal is capable of conquering and at some point I plucked up the courage and went over to join the conversation that Garance was having with another friend. I discovered that she was both an actress and a dancer - very passionate about what she did.

I spoke about the brand and showed photos from our instagram: ah oui, c'est quand même bien français! - she exclaimed. Oui, Garance. It's just that I'm in love with that elegance a la française, in that very inexplicable way, like the one you have.

Monet dress and Mila bag

Soon we arranged a day to photograph in Paris. We met at a café on Place du Marché Sainte-Catherine, one of my favorite spots in the Marais. In her Monet gown, Garance assumed a romantique persona as we walked towards l'île Saint-Louis and loudly declared our love for that place.

Garance looked at me with the look of someone who knew that feeling well: he had already given himself over to those streets, he was already part of them. The day before, she was in that exact spot rehearsing a show with the collective of artists who were also "like my family", she said.

Cardigan Mousse, Jeans Lauren and Panier Isabelle

Before sunset, we went to Belleville for a beer at café chéri(e). At the end of the night, I asked: do you want to be my friend? Garance smiled and looked at me as if he knew we were going to have more beautiful days in Paris. I said I'd be back in the spring.

by Luisa Meirelles.