If Dutch designers are often low profile, they are nevertheless hard workers who stick to their guns, the best example being Lucas Ossendrijver, who has been creating stunning collections at Lanvin for more than a decade. Dutch fashion schools are vibrant, exciting and often full of ideas, blending the raw with the conceptual, historicism with global concerns. This was my first time being part of the jury at Lichting 2017, a great initiative launched in 2007 by HTNK and FashionWeek Netherlands. The purpose of Lichting is to promote the best graduates from the country and award them with 2 prizes: the international jury awards the winner of the competition with 10.000€ while the audience prize, worth 3000€, goes to another graduate. This year, 3 menswear collections clearly stood out.
Lizzy Stuyfzand -who graduated with a BA in Fashion design from ArtEZ in Arnhem- delivered an energetic collection inspired by London club kids and Austrian craftsmen. She walked away with the 10.000€ jury award, which she will use to pursue her textile research. Bold, confident and playful, her clothes were a convincing mix of contemporary tailoring, fancy accessories and contrasting textures, associating sheer fabrics with embroidery techniques, man-made materials with high-quality yarns. Her collection also played with the current gender divide while keeping a strong masculine vibe, even when she sent out a transparent green skirt on the runway, worn with a lurex trimmed shirt. Teun Seuren, who graduated from HKU in Utrecht, was inspired by hooligans and gay power, printing swear words and homophobic slurs on his delicate mesh t-shirts, which subverted the classic language of sportswear. His message was powerful, yet subtle, focusing on wide-legs pants and a softer silhouette, as well as a restrained color palette of red and white. Sophie Roumans, who graduated from Utrecht’s School of the Arts, also had politics in mind with a collection that focused on global warming. Entitled “The Promise”, her clothes hinted at the ambiguity of human behavior towards the planet, creating and destroying it at the same time. Her draping was beautiful, as well as her loose tailored pieces and use of knitwear. Placing drawstrings on several pieces, she managed to play with hems and proportions, offering garments that were intelligent and seductive at once.
If those 3 graduates play their cards well, you’ll probably hear from them in the near future.
Mateo Velasquez is a recent graduate from Central Saint Martins. His new collection is a project to empower LGBTQI+ communities and a way to support non-conforming gender roles.
Luka Bitchikashvili and Alessio Ricardo photographed by Marc Medina and styled by Dave Waldorf with SS19 pieces from SITUATIONIST, in exclusive for Fucking Young! Online.
This season, inspiration comes from recontextualizing, repurposing and elevating ideas and materials to transform them into a completely new collection.
For Spring/Summer 2019 the brand delivered a retro mood with special attention to detail, making a good use of ‘tying’, ‘layering’, and ‘combining’ without never lose the wearability of their pieces.
A far cry from his youngster days singing backing vocals to Destiny’s Child tracks and listening to the cult album The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill growing up.
Talent incubator Fashion East announced its new menswear designer line-up to receive support and showcase as part of its menswear scheme in January 2019.
“The more beautiful the sky, the more hopeless the neighborhood.”
Cover feat. Jhona Burjack at Next Models shot by Kito Muñoz
“And even if we change neighborhoods, cities or countries, we always carry with us that sense of personal transformation that a piece of land, with its buildings, parks, bars, and people, has given us. We are almost certain to hang on to a sense of gratitude and nostalgia for it.”
