The twin-brother team behind the fashion label Dsquared2 are on TV and the radio, they created concert costumes for Madonna and Britney Spears, and they'll be outfitting the headlining performers at the opening and closing ceremonies at the 2010 Winter Olympics. Earlier this year, they received a star on Canada's Walk of Fame — the only fashion designers to be honored alongside the likes of Michael J. Fox and Wayne Gretzky.
They have a collection of branded MAC cosmetics as well as eyewear and fragrance deals. But any time it seems success might go to their heads, they remember their modest Canadian roots and have a good chuckle.
Actually, they do more than chuckle, they crack each other up, communicating in shorthand that takes other people in the room a little while to understand.
"We are twins in every sense of the word," says Dan, who describes himself as the more approachable of the two — although he's also the one who'll crack the whip at work.
Dean claims he's "taller and thinner," sucking in his cheeks and striking a model-worthy pose.
Hysterics ensue.
They've been this close since the day they were born in 1964 in Willowdale, Ontario, and have wanted to work in fashion almost as long, Dean says. Family life was as ordinary as it could be in a household with nine kids, yet he and Dan always had an eye on a bigger picture that his family couldn't see — one that would take them to New York, Milan, Italy, and now London.
"It was normal people, growing up, just not us," Dean says. "We didn't quite fit in, but it was still fun."
Dan jumps in: "With five sisters, though, we did a lot of shopping, dressed them for a lot of proms and parties — and we dressed them! We could do it on a budget, which allowed us to be more creative, and they trusted us because they knew we knew better than them."
The way they tell it, they couldn't wait to start their careers. The first stop was a summer program at Parsons School of Design straight out of high school, but before they knew it they were back in Canada, coaxed by the owner of Ports International (now known as Ports 1961).
It was there that the Catens cut their technical teeth, learning how to cut a pattern, tailor a jacket and critique their own work. On a local scale of success, they were a hit — but the brothers weren't satisfied. It was going to be the European runway or bust.
"People say, `Why risk everything?' But I say, `Why not risk everything?'" Dan says.
"We chose Europe instead of New York," Dean adds, "because it was not so easy to come back home."
Still, they're proud of their Canadian roots: Maple leaves are incorporated into several designs each season.
They started in menswear in 1994 and added womenswear in 2003. Their runway shows are among the most elaborate and flashy on the Milan schedule with themes ranging from "Charlie's Angels" to "Mad Max."
Personally, they only wear clothes with the Dsquared2 label. "We're our own customer. We know what we want and need, so it's all from our heart and it works," Dean says.
(Dean has been known to act as the fitting model — even for the womenswear — because, he explains, no one else is available in the middle of the night when he does his best work. He says he has mastered high heels.)
The new spring collection has a campfire vibe, presented on the catwalk with "Delta Dawn" by Helen Reddy blaring through the speakers. "Deep down inside, we're a little `hick,'" Dan says with a smile.
Music is a key source of inspiration, the Catens say, and they put together the playlist for their runway shows as they're sketching styles. Their famous soundtracks led to XM Radio's "Dean and Dan On Air: Style in Stereo" and now they host Bravo's new "Launch My Line," which gives artistic professionals a chance to break into the fashion biz.
The Catens' personalities largely serve as the glue for the TV show.
"Not only are they super-credible, hot and talented designers, the idea of having identical twin brother designers as fashion hosts is as unique as they are," says Andy Cohen, senior vice president of original programming and development at Bravo. "Plus they're fun, fun, fun!"
When they have time for leisure remains a bit of a mystery, but, at least on this day, it seems they enjoy everything they do.
Between their day jobs as designers and moonlighting gigs as entertainers, they designed much of the interior and furniture of the home they moved into in London. They craft their own ad campaigns, and they joke — but not really — that they are toying with an album.
Still, they can't do it all.
"Don't ask me to tap dance, and Dean can't play hockey," Dan says. "But we can figure skate."
It is certainly Spears’s most ambitious relationship with the runway to date, due in no small measure to her close collaboration with Dean and Dan Caten of the label Dsquared, the identical twins who have dressed the likes of a touring Madonna and are known for a strict allegiance to all things pop. Here, brother Dan opens up on dressing Britney’s big top. She performs tonight at the Nassau Coliseum in Uniondale, N.Y.
I have to ask: What’s your favorite song off of “Circus,” if you had to choose?
The title track, “Circus.” It’s the song I sing all the time!
So how did this collaboration come about?
It was a long time in the making. We wanted to do something with Britney for a long time. This just felt like the right time. Everything fell together this time — we were right, she was right. We were going to do some other things with her in the past, but this one just kind of seemed — well, everybody pointed this way.
The theme is obviously a take on an old-timey circus. Is this a process that you work out with Britney and her camp, or is this something that you and Dean decide privately and then pitch to her and her team?
More or less, we worked with the circus character arc of the show. We figured out how to expand on a circus theme — that was our first input. Then we tried to play with the circus theme in other ways and make it a little bit more twisted. We tried to put a little bit of a sexual, sadomasochist twist on it. The hooded guys, her backup dancers, were kind of like her sex slaves. If you listen to the songs she chose for this tour, they’re a little bit more erotic. So it was kind of like playing on that kind of feel — “Piece of Me” and stuff. The outfits start from the traditional circus ring at first but move to a little bit more of a hard-core sexual vibe. I mean, there’s a leather wrestling match!
Was the sky the limit here, or does Britney run a tight ship?
You have to remember, we’re doing costumes for the stage — there’s a lot of limitations of exactly what the performers can do. Sadly, ideas do get chopped because they are too difficult. You have to keep in mind that they have to move and they have to do stuff. Especially with the more extreme stuff, you have to consider a safety element and a functional element — everyone has to see properly, for example. They could fall and they could hurt themselves, and no one wants that. You have to think a bit about everybody’s needs.
The clothes have got to be durable, I imagine.
Yeah, so that blows a few ideas. (Laughs). But, it’s always fun, though. It’s really great to see when it all comes together. And on stage, it all looks so much better anyway than when we’re preparing everything. But, yes, some things had to be tamed down for the show. And it also has to be put on the road. They have to wash the clothes and all that, so we also have to make sure we don’t make anything too delicate.
How would you characterize Britney’s relationship to style? Particularly when it comes to performances, I know certain pop stars are known to be total control freaks — they want to make sure every sequin matches their vision. Other artists are easier: “Dress me. I’m just the singer, do what you want with me.”
But you know what I like about Britney? She’s easy. It’s not that she didn’t have an opinion, but sometimes it’s difficult when an artist has a strong opinion, because maybe you disagree with their opinion. It’s nice when artists have the attitude “Yes, I’m the singer, but you should be the one that knows about styling.” When they ask you something, it’s nice when they respect and understand where you’re coming from. So, she was really easy on that level. She asked us, “Well, what do you think?” or, “You like it like this?” And then we would explain, “Yeah, this looks great like this” or, “The pants should fit a little higher.” The look is a little bit more ’50s, a little bit more retro than what Britney usually wears. We explained to her how certain fits can elongate your body. She is great listener and very open to direction. What’s really important on stage is that you’re making a silhouette and that there should be shape. Even if the audience can’t see Britney from close up, they must be able to see her from far back. It was important that you could read her from, like, 200 feet back.Tell me a fantasy look for Britney you have dreamed up somewhere in the back of your head.
I like when she’s kind of soft and kitten-y, and kind of blond and that kind of thing. I wouldn’t say pinup girl, but kind of like vixen-y. She’s very sexy and very kind of — the blond, blue-eyed and then the rest. It’s nice to have a little bad.
A favorite concert that you’ve been to in the past?
Well, I guess I’ve got to say, I love the Madonna one that we did — the Drowned world tour. Actually, you know what? The first Blonde Ambition tour I loved. The “Vogue” thing — that was a memorable moment in my lifetime. (Laughs.) And I think we saw that tour 10 times. We were big Madonna fans. Following that, working with Madonna on her Drowned world tour was pretty cool. Seeing your stuff up there on her was kind of cool. That’s a kind of emotion that you can’t live down.
Anyone else you would like to dress for the stage?
(Laughs). I’m trying to think. Anyone out there that should give us a call? We would love to dress other pop singers. I prefer it when somebody like us a little bit and comes to us. (Laughs). We don’t want to knock on anybody’s doors because you can’t force anyone to like you. But, I think we’ve been pretty lucky with the music industry. We’ve worked with a lot of people already. So, I think we’ve kind of lucked out.
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