Wednesday, 05 May 2010
PHILIPPE POURHASHEMI INTERVIEWS IRIS VAN HERPEN
A backstage photograph from Iris van Herpen's last show, shot by Steven Dahlberg
Dear Shaded Viewers,
It is rare in fashion that you meet new talents so utterly immersed in their own world and passionate about their work that the encounter leaves you feeling joyful and inspired. Iris van Herpen is one of them. The Arnhem-based, Dutch designer clearly has a mind of her own. She shows her collections in London and has enjoyed growing attention both from press and buyers over the past year. She may appear frail and fragile, but her imagination has no limits. Iris is on a total creative trip and her strength is to take you there along the way. I can’t even begin to describe what she does, as the shape of her clothes and techniques she uses defy conventional logics. She is exactly what fashion needs right now: a true visionary, with a longing for beauty and complexity.
Tell me a bit about the Arnhem Academy. What was it like studying there?
It was nice, because there were not that many distractions around and you could really focus on your work. I spent a lot of time working on my own there and studied for four years before I graduated.
And what happened after graduation?
Well, I had my graduation show in June 2006 and took a few months off to travel. That’s actually something I had done before entering the course, too. In January 2007, I started working on a new collection, which I ended up presenting during Amsterdam Fashion Week. And that’s when it all started for me.
How many times did you show there?
I showed there four times.
Was the attention growing around your work?
Yes, it was and it went really fast. The Dutch press were the first to notice, but then I started getting attention from international journalists, too. They seemed to really like it.
What pushed you to make the decision to show in London?
I had my press agency there -Blow PR- and they invited me to take part in a show they were organising with other upcoming designers. It felt like a step forward. I liked showing in Amsterdam, but, after a while, it felt like you saw the same people coming to your show, season after season.
And how was your first experience showing there?
It was great. I had a good team of people working with me there, a nice stylist who was helping me, Yasuhiro Takehisa, and it felt like a whole new vibe. It was a different team from the one I normally had in Amsterdam. More international press came and that was exciting for me.
I discovered your clothes in situ when I saw some pieces in Antwerp at the MoMu and they definitely caught my eye.
The MoMu took three dresses from my last Spring Summer collection, which was called “Radiation Invasion”, but they also used the “hair dress” from my very first show in Amsterdam. There was also one look with a mask, which was from my previous Autumn Winter show, called “Mummification”.
One of the black dresses from “Radiation Invasion” was incredible and I really couldn’t tell what fabric you used there.
That collection was inspired by the invisible impact of radiations around us, coming from computers, mobile phones and other devices. The dress you saw was made in leather.
Wow... I was convinced it was plastic! (mutual laughter) That’s unbelievable.
We worked with leather in such a way that it became supple and easy to bend and twist.
And how do you mould leather to make it so soft?
It depends on what effect you want to achieve. You can heat it up a little bit or sculpt it when it’s wet. If you use thinner strips, they tend to be more bendable.
Two looks from her last show, Synesthesia, shot by Michel Zoeter
How long do you spend making a dress like that?
That varies from dress to dress. I work on several pieces at the same time, so I don’t really count the hours spent on each one. I’d probably say it takes on average a month to make one. Everything is hand-made. You could never do this using a machine.
That’s amazing. I saw you did something with Harrods last year where people could see your pieces showcased on the shop floor and order some looks. How did that go?
Harrods saw my first show in London and they really liked it. They asked me if I wanted the collection to go into production, but, in my opinion, that really was not possible. There’s so much handwork there. I also want my collection to be a bit more exclusive. They offered me to do the exhibition and people could order if they wanted to.
And did anyone buy the clothes?
No. There was a lot of interest in the pieces, but the prices were really high. Some dresses cost around 10.000 pounds and that was probably a bit much.
What is your vision for the next seasons to come? How would you like the collection to evolve?
Last season, I had a showroom in Paris after the London show, which was good. I had all the catwalk pieces there and some of them are more wearable than others. We had some orders from new clients, which we are currently making in the atelier. There were quite a few stores interested, but, in the end, I only selected two that I liked, bearing in mind the amount of work I knew we would spend making the pieces. I also don’t think it works with my pieces to have them in too many shops. I want to keep exploring things I’m interested in and take it slowly. I am working on several other projects, too.
Great! Can you tell me about them?
I’m doing costumes for a production of “Madame Butterfly” in the Netherlands, which will travel internationally. The première will be in September and I am looking forward to it, as it will combine opera and dance. That’s going to be nice and quite a big production, too. Another project I’m working on is with Benthem Crouwel, two famous Dutch architects. They designed the new Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam. I am doing a “wearable building” concept for them, which will be showcased on water around the ARCAM, the Architecture Centre of Amsterdam.
Are you planning on coming back to Paris next season?
Well, I had a meeting with someone from the Institut Néerlandais and they asked me if I’d like to have a presentation or a show in their space for a couple of days.
That’s really good. Some designers like Bas Kosters showed there.
Viktor & Rolf did, too. I think it’d be a really nice thing to work on. Of course, it will all depend on the time I’ve got in the next months.
When you work in Arnhem, do you have a regular team with you?
It really depends on the period. At the moment, there are three people working with me there, but there are a few more before each show.
Where do you get your ideas from?
Well, I tend to lock myself away from the world. For instance, I don’t have a television and I like creating my own little atmosphere where I live. Of course, I’m not a complete recluse and use the Internet regularly, but I try to keep my intuition alive and kicking. I think too much information coming from the outside world can really confuse you. I would say that, most of the time, I get my inspiration from daily life. There are all these things that are taken for granted or considered “normal”, but, in fact, we often don’t know that much about them. I like things that puzzle you and force you to question the world. I like to try to get into these things.
Two images from the Synesthesia lookbook, shot by Rollan Didier
Is it like a reinterpretation of reality that raises questions in your work?
Yes, it is. I give no answers with what I do. I’m only here for the questioning and people can get their own answers from that. I like surprising myself and being amazed at things. You know, something could seem so normal, like a telephone, but perhaps it isn’t.
Do all these thoughts get inside your head and eventually become a dress?
Yes, I work a lot with atmospheres and am sensitive to certain objects that feed my imagination. For “Radiation Invasion”, I was interested in how we are not able to tell what radiations look like. Maybe we will know in the future, or maybe we won’t. We can’t hold them or see them, yet they are all around and going through us.
Is it the mysterious aspect that you like in such things? It seems to me that your clothes hold the same amount of mystery, too.
Yes, when things are not that clear, they come up as images in my head. It’s about what these things could be and I translate these images into clothes.
Your last Winter collection was based around the theme of synesthesia. Can you tell me why?
I think it’s a very contemporary thing. People’s senses are oversaturated. They listen to music all day. They watch television or look at the Internet all the time. Their senses are always assailed and stimulated. You see it with the success of 3D films, too. It’s as though people wanted to experience more and more with their senses. I realised that a lot of individuals have the condition and I have met some of them.
Do you have it, too?
Yes, a little bit, but not as much as them. I have a lot of friends who work in music, and I tend to make up my own little images when I listen to it. It’s a natural thing to do for me and probably a small form of synesthesia on my part. People who really have it can taste something that they see or hear something that they taste. They see colours when they hear you talk. I was wondering if maybe it’d be possible to create people with mixed senses in the future.
And when you design clothes, is it always an abstract process for you?
At the beginning, it was really abstract, but I’d say it’s more about the reality now.
Lady Gaga wore your clothes. How did that feel when you saw her? Was it strange or satisfying?
It was a bit of both. I guess I like it when different worlds come together. It’s the process of reality versus abstraction that I find interesting. It only comes to life when someone is wearing it and when they’re putting their identity into the piece. That makes it real for me.
And what do you normally start with? Do you sketch or do you drape?
I mostly drape on the mannequin. The picture’s always in my head before I start.
What is your opinion on Dutch fashion?
I like creating clothes here, but the Dutch fashion scene is not as international and mixed as in other cities. Even though it’s becoming bigger here, it still doesn’t have the same impact as London or Paris. I guess people have different opinions on the subject. Some say you can now work from wherever and others argue that you need a major fashion city to have the necessary connections.
And what do you do when you’re not busy with fashion. Do you have time to do anything else?
Not that much (mutual laughter). I like the simple stuff: spending time with my friends, going to see a museum, just regular things.
What are the things that you don’t like about fashion?
The speed of the industry can be frustrating. Sometimes you have a great idea in your head and would like to have more time to explore it, but that’s not possible. When I worked on “Mummification”, I would have loved to go to Egypt to look into it more deeply, but there was no time for that as the collection had to get done. Then again, I need the pressure in my work. The more pressure I have, the more intuitive I get. There’s not that much time for doubts anymore, you just have to get on with it and trust your instinct. And sometimes, that’s the best.
During the whole process of putting a show and collection together, what is the moment that feels the best?
One of my favourite moments is the photo shoot that we do just before the show. That’s the first time I get to see all the dresses in one day, like a continuous sequence moving on the models. You get to see the collection as a whole and it comes to life.
And how do you feel after the show?
I feel blank. I’m very happy, of course, but you have to let go. The collection is now in the world and it’s not yours anymore. It was something personal that no one had seen before and then it’s...
Out.
Yes. And that’s a relief.
Best,
Philippe
Iris van Herpen's Synesthesia collection will be stocked at Sien in Antwerp and Alan Journo in Milan.
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