I think I represent a new wave of creators. We’ve been exposed to the internet, grew up listening to Kanye West, so obviously we’re going to adapt that whole theory of multidiscipline as opposed to doing only one thing. On paper I studied design…..
Bernhard Willhelm
Bernhard Willhelm
Text JF. Pierets Photos Courtesy of MOCA
The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles presents the first American museum exhibition of the work of fashion designers Bernhard Willhelm and Jutta Kraus. Bernhard Willhelm 3000: When Fashion Shows The Danger Then Fashion Is The Danger, is a meditation on the future of commerce and a ‘thinking-forward exhibition’.
The designer sees the show as his response to the uniformity of consumerism in the 21st century as well as a forecast of the fashion experience in the 22nd century. Since the founding of his eponymous label in 1999 with Kraus, Willhelm has been moving in between chaos and diversity. In opposition to the minimalist designs that dominated runways in the 1990s, Willhelm’s designs are characterized by their outspoken visual language, which they transform and combine in an unparalleled way with juxtapositions between high and low culture. We caught Willhelm in a mood to talk about art, asking questions and hard-ons. Needless to say we loved it!
How are you?
Very good! The new collection arrived today.
Happy with the result?
O yes! It looks very experimental. This week I have to finish everything for the show at MOCA. It’s a solo show and we introduce the latest collection, which will also be presented in Paris by the end of the month. A collection about the future of fashion and the future of commerce. It’s about what people project on fashion and how fashion can look into the future.
The show is titled ‘When Fashion Shows The Danger Then Fashion Is The Danger’ and is your response to the uniformity of consumerism in the 21st century. Can you elaborate?
Fashion is a part of life and you have to deal with it. The interesting part of it is that it becomes more and more important. The perception of fashion, what it is versus what it was, has changed completely over the last 10 or 20 years. We all turned into educated consumers, which means that at a very young age we are somehow ‘educated’ on the products we want to buy. Or when it comes to the products that they tell us to buy. LA is therefore an interesting place because they are obsessed with image. It’s a place based on the entertainment industry, with the Oscars as the cherry on the cake. LA has established itself as the new fashion capital, highly important for image making, since those images are transported all over the world.
You relocated the Willhelm-team to Los Angeles. Has it been a big adjustment?
I came here just because of the difference between Europe and America. America is still the promised land but it’s also very doomed, yet for us Europeans, it’s a Franz Kafka kind of doomed. For me it’s maybe the most magical place to be. It brings a lot of new influences and you get new impressions on how Americans are. I’m currently based in Beachwood Canyon, which is exactly where the Hollywood sign is – I actually call it Hollyweed because there is a lot of smoking going on around here. Every morning I take a little hike and I see people posing in front of the sign so I’m actually living on a magic mountain. It’s an experiment: ‘Bernhard goes to Hollywood’.
You talk a lot about experiments.
That’s because each collection is an experiment. We work since 1999 and now people start to see the story, the big picture. Being a fashion designer is going into a cycle. The first seasons you’re the hot new kid on the block. But to hold that presumption and to continue being an actual fashion designer, that is not very easy. What you can see now, is that we have both ‘forward thinking collections’ and ‘experiments’. People do expect that. They come to us for the unexpected, and are gathering recognizable signature pieces from each collection. Compared to most fashion houses, we are not selling so much handbags and accessories, but for us it has always been the experimental products. We are actually selling clothes. Let’s say it’s a specialized group of people who are interested in us.
You are working for over 10 years now, what has changed overtime?
The most significant thing that happened in those 10 years is a certain kind of freedom. I have done Belgium and then Paris. A little bit of Mexico and now I moved the complete team here. I guess the most significant thing is that somehow we are a very free community on how to operate in fashion – The globalization of it all, since the products are produced both in Japan and for a little part in Belgium. The sunglasses are made in Berlin and the shoes are made in Spain. It’s a very abstract way of working since it all comes from different places, yet that’s the exact thing that makes us very free and gives us the possibility to travel. What also changed is that I recently realized that it takes a bit longer than usual to put your face in shape when you are 42.
In the show you give us a vision of an apocalyptic future. The year 3000, an era defined by ecological disaster and climate change. Is it your role as an artist, to ask questions?
It’s the role and beauty of every living person here on earth. If you take everything for granted it would be a little bit too easy.
You’re work is filled with sex and full of fun, but also signed by complexity and anarchism. You can say it’s happy and fucked up at the same time. It may be ironic but there is also a lot of humor involved. I work with different perceptions of what fashion eventually is. What makes you happy, what really pisses you off. There are issues on diversity, sexuality and there are controversial issues. I always think that people who feel that those elements don’t belong in fashion, are actually not preserving enough to be in fashion. Am I good enough to be in fashion? Maybe not. I don’t know. I guess it’s just about asking questions. And am I asking only happy questions? No! That would be too easy. I’m not only here to make people happy. I’m here to ask questions. Whether they like those questions or not, is a superficial side issue.
‘I work with different perceptions of what fashion eventually is. What makes you happy, what really pisses you off. There are issues on diversity, sexuality and there are controversial issues.’
I read you sell the most in Japan? How do you keep your balance towards customers: Japan versus America?
We have indeed a very big Japanese fan base. We even have fans – let’s call it collectors – who are actually putting our clothes on the wall. They are living in it. This is also the thought behind the expo, the question; why is fashion so important that it’s in a museum? So far I have done two museum shows, both in Antwerp and in Groningen. This is actually my 3rd solo show. It also means that I’m doing fashion exhibitions in museums at a young age. That also means that my creations are very much liked as art.But to return to your original question: People here are completely obsessed by fashion. So in a way it’s a bit like in Japan. We also opened a shop here in Beverly Hills and there seems to be the same amount of interest in both places so I don’t have to adjust.
Does fashion belong in a museum?
Fashion is all about decision-making and about how I want to be perceived by people who go to a museum. You also reach a much larger public. People who normally have nothing to do with fashion, go to a museum because they want to see something interesting. And since you don’t want to bore people, you’re giving them a different perception about what fashion can be.
You collaborate with a lot of artists. Is that a must when it comes to your creative process?
Working with artists is about stimulation and inspiration. And appreciation. I have a team that stimulates me because of its group-energy and because those people don’t always agree with me. That energy and that clash of taste is the most important thing when you are a creative person.
You also worked with one of our favorite photographers, Lukas Beyeler, for your 2012 lookbook. Lukas is, among other things, very interested in gay porn stars and drag. How about you?
The gay community is very important to talk to. I talk to them in my own language and they get turned on by it – or I get turned on by it – and that’s already enough. I don’t want to intellectualize porn because porn is just porn. We used porn stars as models to present our collection. For me it was just fashion and image making, it had nothing to do with porn. And maybe by doing that, I’m changing the perception of the porn star. I think that’s very exciting. And eventually I get a hard on. When Bernhard wakes up with a hard on, it’s a very happy day.
Good for you!
It is! Because when there is an erection there is energy. It’s all about stimulation. You don’t want to bore people by being a prude.
What makes your world rock?
My work. Fashion is about decision-making. Whether you have a certain talent or whether you’re good with your hands or your eyes. And since a lot of people are saying that I have that talent, I feel privileged.There are so many people who want to do this job yet so few people have the chance to do so. I got that chance and I consider it a gift.
More crazy, fun and beautiful work on the future wish-list?
Blue jeans and total wealth. I do like the idea of blue jeans with a gold stitching!
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Rein Vollenga
Rein Vollenga
Text JF. Pierets Photos Jonas Lindström
You can call it ‘wearable sculpture’, if you really want to give it a name. Those who would like to look outside the box a bit might see an attractive work of art, dark yet extremely seductive. Whether he is a sculptor or a milliner, Rein Vollenga is a creative artist first and foremost, with a positive outlook on life and a healthy attitude towards success.
What triggers you to make such unique wearable sculpture headpieces?
From an early age, I love making objects and working with my hands. It surprises me and gives me satisfaction every day. This is the main reason why I create. My work is about fantasy and ambiguity and I hope to evoke something in the viewer’s mind that will trigger their imagination. Either good or bad.
From where do you draw your inspiration?
I collect objects in my immediate surroundings. I browse in supermarkets, party stores and I find things on the streets. I’m highly fascinated by objects that are mass-produced and have an organic or physical aesthetic like mannequins, packaging, car parts et cetera. Furthermore I’m interested in traditional craftsmanship. I love visiting museums of ancient, classical and primitive art. It’s great to see objects that have been made with love and dedication.
You moved to Berlin. How does the city influence your work?
I am very fortunate to live in a beautiful city full of history and art and to be surrounded by many creative an inspiring people like artists, musician performers and all kinds of free spirits. I have a lot of opportunities to experiment, collaborate and explore my creativity. Besides, as a gay man I don’t feel judged for my looks and sexuality. In Berlin I can be whoever I want to be.
You are an artist, also working in fashion. How do you combine those two?
There is no difference between the two in how I approach my work. The origin of my craft is sculpture. I just see art and fashion as different platforms to show my work. Because I don’t dismiss any platform, I can show my work in museums and galleries, in music videos, on the catwalk and on the internet. This gives me the opportunity to reach people who don’t visit the – sometimes bourgeois and elitist – galleries and museums. It makes my work available to everyone. As art should be.
I read in an interview that you find it very important to be true to yourself and others. Can you elaborate?
Just be dedicated to what you genuinely love to do in life, and don’t talk bullshit. It is hard to pursue a career in art. As a young artist you might not be appreciated immediately. My advice is to work hard. This will be rewarded in the long run. People love to make a lot of fuss about nothing these days. Check the celebrity pages for instance. People are famous for being famous. Isn’t that hollow and sad? I would rather be recognized and appreciated for what I do.
‘Be dedicated to what you genuinely love to do in life, and don’t talk bullshit. My advice is to work hard. This will be rewarded in the long run.’
On your website you have two different categories: ‘sculpture’ and ‘wearable’. Do ‘ordinary’ people actually wear your creations and who are your main customers?
Ordinary is not in my dictionary. I create unique pieces so I mainly work on special projects with fashion brands, performance artists and musicians.
Do you ever think of designing clothes?
Not really, but this might be something for the future. I can imagine a collaboration with a fashion house. To create some ready-to-wear limited editions in the future. I’m mainly interested in the theatrical part of fashion shows.
Your work has a dark, hedonistic and fetishistic feel to it. Is that your aim or just my imagination?
No, that is not my aim but just your naughty imagination I guess. But I think you refer to the slick and glossy finish of my works. I do understand what you mean with the dark hedonistic and fetishistic feel but this only implicates what fashion presumes a fetish to be. Here’s what the dictionary says: ‘any object or non-genital part of the body that causes a habitual erotic response or fixation.’
Your headpieces are – in my opinion – genderless. Is that a conscious choice?
Yes, I don’t create pieces for a specific gender. I create my objects as an extension of the human body.
You once said that you make a piece almost every day. Is this still the case and how do you keep up?
Yes I still do. I work on several projects a day. But since the making of a sculpture has many stages, there’s always something to do. It might sound obsessive but it all comes natural to me.
You had numerous collaborations with people like Mugler, Lady Gaga, Johnny Woo, etc. and you have been featured in Dazed and Confused, I-D, Interview and many other magazines. Any future dreams?
Yes! I would love to create stage designs and costumes for opera, ballet or contemporary dance in the future.
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Text JF. Pierets Photos Courtesy of Peter Popps
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First things first; how does it feel to see Lady Gaga stand in your shoes.
Great! The excitement was huge when they contacted me, because you don’t know what to expect. When you see the movie, my work is shown in just one second of frame. It’s for those who want to see it. Or am I too modestly Dutch now? The real excitement started when confronted with the reactions from family, friends and all other lovely people. People from television started to call me, as they wanted to feature the collaboration. I must say, the emails, phone calls and messages didn’t give me much time to breath. I have been busy for 4 days to answer all of it. I guess I’m not born this way!
What’s the story? Did you know or was it a complete surprise?
I think she has one of the best stylists surrounding her. I mean, there is a group of people working for her hunting around on the internet. I always admired that group as they did find many unknown designers and made them known for a bigger audience. My website had been on-line for 3 weeks and I received an email from Hayley Pisaturo, one of the assistants of Brandon Maxwell, who’s a member from the ‘Haus of Gaga’. She asked me if I was interested in collaboration and a photoshoot for V-Magazine. Inez and Vinoodh would be the photographers. At first I couldn’t believe the email but that same week the selected shoes went to in New York.
Your creations strike me as ‘Kubrick meets Bondagequeen’. Can you tell me something about your inspiration?
First of all, I wanted people to know my name after working all those years on a contract for so many different brands. Second, after 24 years of designing commercial shoes, I never felt a stronger urge to design opposed to the mainstream cultural values as they are forced on us today. I have been highly influenced by magnetic transportation. Take a look at the Roller Skates…introduced in 1760 and at the beginning of the 18-hundreds, London already had covered rollerskatingrings. It took almost 200 years before they did have synthetic wheels. The 1st margin problem I guess. It goes for skateboarding, which was founded by surfers around the 50’s. They invented a way on wooden boxes or boards with roller skate wheels attached to the bottom. Skateboarding gained in such popularity that soon many cities had skateboard-decks or even bigger places. Next to my fascination about those things, I have a weakness for all kinds of science-fiction movies like The Matrix, Star Wars, Mad Max or even Avatar or Men in Black, I’m inspired by movies such as Metropolis, A Space Odyssey (there you go with Kubrick) and Barbarella. But also comics like Superman, Batman or Spiderman. Fantasies, which are based on innovations in and from the future. I’m also influenced by avant-gardism, 60’s space-age design and the amazing art of bondage. With all those inputs I developed the basic for this little collection.
What kind of woman/man do you have in mind while creating?
For the woman who knows how and when to wear them. A woman who knows her vulnerability and who’s confidence. I adore the feminine power that comes from a woman who only gives herself to the one she chooses. Nevertheless I adore every man who’s sensitive enough to walk the in her footsteps.
Are they also meant for men? If not, would you ever design a male shoe?
My designs are for those who can relate to them.When it comes to trans, drags or queens, it makes no difference for me. In the past I designed many shoes in collaboration with Luichiny. Known for it’s high towers and platforms, which have been mainly designed for drags and queens. I loved doing that. But to design shoes that are exclusively for men? That isn’t fun! Four years ago I designed the first accepted sport shoe that did have a zip. Finally, a zip!!! Most men are afraid of being looked at as eccentric, and those who are, are creative in making their own style.
‘My designs are for those who can relate to them. When it comes to trans, drags or queens, it makes no difference for me.’
What’s the personal angle in your work? Fetishism?
No. Innovations from the future. Today it’s a soft mix between bondage and space age but tomorrow it can be the black music from the 70’s. Inspiration is coming from all kinds of directions.
Each of your pieces is unique. What if someone wants to buy them?
I get many requests but I didn’t have any sort of production in mind when I developed them. The sole constructions from the shoes are so complicated in fitting and making, that I’ve always seen them as wearable jewelry and pieces of art. In order to meet all those request I searched for several possibilities but it ended up way to expensive. Also, most people want to be able to walk in them. How strange.
Would you ever consider going into mainstream shoe designing?
I did for 24 years and for different brands, and many of you might have a shoe I designed as freelancer for many companies. Yet I’m done with what the market offers to the customers. It all looks pretty much the same. A copy from a copy from a copy, mixed with some retro and an outrageous price comparing to the quality. Me and many other designers with me are developing a lot of new innovations, which isn’t even remotely comparable with what’s available in the shops. I probably will continue designing commercial shoes but I first want to follow my heart in making a few extra special pieces.
You enjoy 24 years of experience of shoe design for numerous brands. How does you future look like?
As happy as always! Kicking against cultural values that are forced on us and trying to make people smile without judgment, as we need our freedom to feel alive. And maybe I’ll design some shoes in the mean time.
You have 4 main works. Can you give us a peep into your mind regarding number 5?
They will come in black and white and no; Chanel has not been an inspiration here! And I will show the first walkable one.
If you could choose anyone in the entire world, dead or alive, for whom would you like to create a pair? And why?
Just one? Vladimir Putin. Something to hang him up side down as long as it needs until he admits that love is an equal right for everybody.
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Paul Boudens
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Text JF. Pierets Artwork Paul Boudens
Originally, Paul Boudens wanted to become a fashion designer when he first set foot in Antwerp. Yet fate decided differently (he flunked his entrance exam) and nowadays he’s one of the most wanted graphic designers working together with the Antwerp Fashion Museum and icons like Walter Van Beirendonck and Haider Ackermann. We catch up with him just as he returns from the Otis College of Art and Design in LA.
I read you were in LA for a “provocative discussion about the creation, reinterpretation, and presentation of fashion”. Did you also have some fun?
Yes, we had a LOT of fun! Last year, Otis asked me to run some workshops with the students, but after sending some e-mails back and forth, I wondered if it wouldn’t be cool to take designer Walter Van Beirendonck, photographer Ronald Stoops and make-up artist Inge Grognard along with me. That way we had the four-leaf clover of Antwerp fashion: a fashion designer, a photographer, a make-up artist, and a graphic designer. Otis instantly loved the idea, and even involved the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) so it turned out to be quite a tour.
Antwerp was put on the fashion map in 1988. How did that happen?
Well, if I remember correctly: six graduates of the Fashion Department of the Antwerp Royal Academy staged a group fashion show at London Fashion Week. The British press called them the “Antwerp Six” and turned Flemish fashion into a (inter)national phenomenon.
And fashion has become the fourth largest industry in Antwerp since then.
It’s amazing how much talent we have over here.
You work with Walter Van Beirendonck for over three decades now. Was it a well-considered decision?
Not at all. I rolled in by accident. He asked me to create prints for his T-shirts in 1989. I was in my third year of Graphic Design and Illustration. We’ve been working together ever since. His work explores challenging social issues and ignores conventional trends. It’s great working with this kind of explosive energy.
And quickly your fluorescent colors and exciting invitations attracted the attention of other designers. Isn’t it difficult to work for and with so many different creative people?
In the beginning we had a blast kicking all things sacred and bourgeois. Something that came both out of rebellion as out of inability, I must say: the folly of youth! Or the ignorance and arrogance, of course. (laughs) As time goes by you develop a kind of empathic skill and I discovered that I’m good in translating what a designer wants or likes to see, without losing my own persona.
Nevertheless you describe your work as ‘classic with a schizophrenic twist’.
You have to: that’s how you become when working with so many different people. (laughs)
The punk twist has become partly one of your signatures and your work communicates a strong vision. Is it possible to hold onto your outspoken style in an industry saturated by hype?
I never was a punk, you know. But, most designers create an aesthetic through a certain photographic vocabulary that is already very strong. There’s no reason for me to re-invent that. The image has to stay close to what they are standing for. But they trust me enough to play around with their ‘vocabulary’.
Don’t you ever feel frustrated not having more to do with the principle image?
No. I love working in the shadow of a fashion designer, helping to expand their vision. Once in a while, I venture out into the limelight, but it quickly bores me. I’m perfectly happy where I am and with what I do.
In the meantime, you can add Dries Van Noten, Olivier Theyskens, Comme des Garçons, Yohji Yamamoto, Wim Neels, Jurgi Persoons, A.F. Vandevorst, Haider Ackermann, The Antwerp Fashion Academy, Het Zuidelijk Toneel and MoMu, the Fashion Museum of the Province of Antwerp, and many others to your palmarès. What are the things you are most proud of?
I consider every thing I design as a sort of ‘baby’, you know. But, two things are very dear to me. First, there’s my monograph Paul Boudens Works Volume I, which was published in 2003, and second there’s my solo exhibition at The Wapping Project in London in 2010 called ‘Trust Me (I Know What I’m Doing)’. How’s that for an ego boost! (laughs)
In 2001, you were responsible for the art direction of ‘Fashion 2001 Landed’, the ambitious fashion city project in Antwerp with Walter Van Beirendonck and Gerdi Esch. Didn’t you become art director and graphic designer of A Magazine during this project?
You are totally right, my dear. (laughs) We wanted A Magazine to be a fashion magazine that explores the universe of a chosen fashion designer in each issue. We invited a guest curator – an international fashion designer, group or house – to develop innovative, personalized content to express their aesthetic and cultural values. Each issue celebrated the designer’s ethos: their friends, their passion, their stories, emotions, fascinations, spontaneity and authenticity. Back then, we made issues with, among others, Bernhard Willhelm, Hussein Chalayan and Olivier Theyskens, and more recently Maison Martin Margiela, Yohji Yamamoto, Haider Ackermann and Riccardo Tisci from Givenchy. The magazine was always a wonderful race against time. I got the material a little ahead of time, so I could do some preliminary lay-outs for when the designer came to Antwerp, we could work like crazy to do the whole magazine in three or four days. Sadly, I had to say goodbye to the magazine: let’s cite musical differences. (laughs)
‘I started off making cassette covers and cards for friends with Mecanorma letters in a time when colour photocopies were still a novelty. Yes, I’m a dinosaur now.’
Does fashion still make you happy?
You know, fashion itself doesn’t interest me. (laughs) But it’s a fun sector to work in. However, society has changed tremendously in the last ten years and fashion became a really serious business. Everything has to be profitable so things are less intuitive, spontaneous and dangerous. Nevertheless, that’s the way it is and I like the fast pace of fashion. I can’t remember what a holiday feels like because I’m always at work and the fashion show invitations are always lurking around the corner.
Next to fashion show invitations you’re also designing books, catalogs, posters. You obviously love your work.
I just love to create stuff. Maybe it’s because I’m easily bored. I always say: ‘the nicest job is always the next one’.
Do you have other ambitions?
Not really, like I said before: I am where I should be, doing what I should do. I once said that finding the right typeface is like falling in love — I guess that illustrates how I feel about my work.
Were you the class swat or the rebel?
As a teenager I was a total wuss: if I would meet myself now I would kick myself and shout ‘MAN UP!’. However, studying graphic design, I had a lot of fun. Mind you, I flunked my entrance exam to the Antwerp Fashion Academy in the mid-80’s and on a comfortable budget from my parents; I tried some other things like Press and Communication and Translation. Nevertheless, the moment I really had to make an effort and discovered Graphic Design, I knew where my heart was and it went rather smoothly.
You started off in the ‘80’s so I guess the tools to work with were quite different from now?
I started off making cassette covers and cards for friends with Mecanorma letters in a time when colour photocopies were still a novelty. Yes, I’m a dinosaur now. (laughs) I guess you can say the possibilities were different, yet not per definition worse; on the contrary: there was a lot more freedom!
Your work shows taped edges and paint splatters on wallpaper or cotton amongst other materials. The result is both rough and sharp, somewhat twisted and leaving a strange impression. Is that where your handywork comes in?
You know, I started analog then went digital — there was no other choice. But I like that combination: design or art is simply not done just on a computer. When you work with tape, paper and scissors, your mind works differently than when behind a screen. Anyway, I always want to give my work a human touch.
What’s your main philosophy when it comes to your work?
I don’t like designs with a shelf life of one day only. How ironic this might seem while working mainly in fashion, I want my work to be timeless, which is actually impossible. However, my work ages quite well, I think — there’s some good genes in it. (laughs)
And does it always work?
Not always, of course. Most of the time the right image pops up in my head and I try to recreate that. If nothing appears, I’m in trouble, but it happens rarely… (laughs) If it takes a little longer, there’s always my gut feeling, which makes me avoid hypes and go for the long run.
Tell me your future dream.
Yuk, what a difficult question! Let’s say ‘publishing the second volume of my monograph’, maybe? It’s Bald Ambition I guess: look at my head! (laughs)
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Et Alors? magazine. A global celebration of diversity.
Pierre Garroudi
Pierre Garroudi
Text JF. Pierets Photos Darren Brade
His intricate designs merge the lines between art & fashion and have been worn by some of the world’s biggest style icons from Naomi Campbell to Kate Moss, Scarlet Johansson and Sarah Jessica Parker. He walks the streets of London with his flashmobs and has the tendency to approach his fabrics with the eye of a scientist.
Your résumé reads like a travel trip.
I was born in Iran, lived in Paris for 5 years, 2 years in Lyon, then Shanghai. In Manhattan I ran a Garroudi shop/gallery and stayed there for 14 years. After inhabiting Boca Raton for another year I made my way to London.
How does such a journey influence a person?
I’m a sponge. I try to absorb everything. Having a multicultural background gives me wisdom and inspiration. Knowledge is like light, it opens your eyes to the world.
Why did you end up in London?
London is magical. You should see how the people dress up when they go out. It’s a vessel of inspiration.
When did your carreer start?
I studied in Paris, while working as a hairdresser in my spare time. I moved to New York in 1986. There I joined the Fashion Institute of Technology after working at various retail and design houses. I started my own label in 1993.
Why fashion?
I think fashion is a way of expressing yourself and showing your beliefs and identity because clothes can tell you a lot about a person.
What’s your message?
It’s about being passionate, I believe whatever you put out you get back. My collections are expressions of my own experiences. It’s like looking into a mirror.
Let’s talk technical; you manipulate all your fabric?
Yes. You can’t buy any of my fabric because it doesn’t exist. I love to look at it with the eye of a scientist. The multi-layered matte and sheen silks become second skin to the wearer.
Some call it pioneering fabric-folding work.
It’s all done by hand, which creates an origami effect. I guess it’s quite unique, yes. I believe fabric manipulation it the next evolution in fashion.
And very time consuming.
It is. And you have to be extremely patient to do so. Sometimes it takes me a month to make one dress, but then you create an entirely piece unique. They are one of a kind.
You are known for using interesting and diverse models, which is a breath of fresh air in the fashion industry.
I think it’s generally better to have a diverse selection of models. We live in a world that’s mixed, I mean half of the world is Asian, and only, maybe twenty percent of the world is white.
Where do you get your inspiration?
I’m inspired by talented and creative people and by the sheer beauty of humanity. I try to learn from every person I meet. For example, my life won’t be the same after I talked to you and vise versa.
‘I took my collection ‘Red-Stopping’ to some of London’s most distinguished avenues and tubes.’
What kind of women wears your designs?
Naturally the types of women who wear these types of clothes have to be self-secure and strong, have confidence.
Why?
Because you can’t go out there and wear something creative and be shy at the same time. The women who like my clothes use them as a tool to express themselves.
Can I call it wearable art?
I leave it up to you how to call it. I try to make things that are wearable. Expensive, but wearable.
Everybody is talking about the bad economy. Does it influence you?
It does, yes, but I think that everything happens for a reason. Anything good or bad, it teaches you a lesson. Once you learned the lesson you can move forward.
How?
I’m doing a lot of research. Reading up about the business and the marketing side of fashion. These days you need to be on all of the social networks, Facebook, Twitter, Linked-In. I’m looking for different ways to present my designs.
The fashion industry is changing nowadays.
The new generation want things much faster, right away, they don’t want to wait, they’re just looking for something they want, they get it, they move on. We don’t have time. Do you have time to read all the blogs, do you have time to read all the fashion magazines? This is going to reflect on fashion shows, on the fashion industry.
You already took your clothes from the runway into the streets?
And called it flash-mobs. With my cast of models and dancers, I took my collection ‘Red-Stopping’ to some of London’s most distinguished avenues and tubes.
And it became a big success.
I loved it so much I did it again with the ‘Turquoise Collection’/Beauty of the Sea’ conveying an aesthetically pleasing experience of creatures born of a mystical island, lost at sea. It was raining that day. That was nice.
The future looks bright?
I’m sure it does. The more creative the better so feel free to write that I’m interested in any kind of collaboration. I try to learn from everybody!
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