It might not surprise you to learn that the ornate art piece Beyoncé wears on the cover of her spellbinding new album Renaissance came with “a video of how to install it on her”. What will shock you is that its creator Nusi Quero has no formal fashion training. The inquisitive maker, who studied architecture and is a musician by trade, started dreaming up his bodacious boudoir armour three years ago. His method? Pure intuition.
When Beyoncé’s team inquired about his majestic multi-disciplinary work, previously worn by Grimes and Kylie Jenner, the unintentional designer stuck to his original mission: to make beautiful, intricate things, rather than couture, or even wearable fashion. “I don’t consider Nusi Quero a brand – it is me, it is the peculiar range of ideas that I iterate,” explains the Floridian, who grew up graffitiing the faded tourist attractions that defined his childhood.
Sticking to his guiding principles of “systems, harmony and adornment”, Quero did what he normally does and went scavenging. “Beyoncé’s piece was actually constructed of chromed bits I stumbled upon during one of my ritualistic scavenger hunt strolls through LA’s fashion district,” he shares of finding treasure no one else sees in his hometown. “I don’t know much about garment construction using fabrics (I’m still learning!), so I tend to stick to this one block of shops that has a lot of unique trims, rhinestones, charms and beads. The base of it is a half spiked chrome grid that was then lined with strips of rhinestones, and applied to the body in about six to eight different sections. The styling team [Vance Gamble and Marni X Marni] did a magnificent job applying it to Beyoncé.”
Patience is indeed key when it comes to Nusi Quero’s world. Working completely alone, the sexy-tough commission took him a week and a half to “figure out”. “It wasn’t the sort of idea that I sketched out and then realised,” notes Quero. “I made it by putting it together and discovering it as it happened. I adore making things in this way, although I think it can be frustrating for stylists, who are expecting traditional sketches and processes.”
The arresting end result made piecing together Quero’s jigsaw-like puzzle worthwhile – however painstaking the Renaissance build might have been. “The album is graceful, sexy, compositionally immaculate, and shows Beyoncé as an empowered and courageous artist and woman,” says the conceptual creative, who is humbled to see his work play a part in this narrative.
What’s next for this intriguing free spirit? More lingerie-costumery that “powers up” the wearer like they’re in a video game. “I want to embolden and elevate people,” asserts this American dreamer, who goes his own way and is not at all jaded by the industry he now finds himself in. “So far, it seems to do that for my customers and clients.” There can be no arguing with this. Now, where to source a silver horse?
This article was originally published on Vogue UK.
