This is what happens when two of your favourite thing collide! For her runway show in Paris for her latest collection, Between The Lines, innovative Dutch designer Iris Van Herpen (whom we have discussed in a previous entry) collaborated with one of our favourite conceptual shoe designers Carolin Holzhuber. Carolin's shoes walking down this runway are an interpretation of her -NO- collection.
The copper--plated diagonal heels shift the balance of the shoe, leaving a rectangular gap between the lines.
“Between the Lines”, Dutch designer Iris van Herpen’s new Couture collection presented in Paris on January 23rd 2017, explores the imperfection of systems and structure in both the physical and digital worlds.
Van Herpen focuses on the gaps in between the structures of her materials, rather then the structures themselves, by shaping patterns that dissimulate the body’s perspective or subtract it. By building up the patterns and then distorting them, the eye’s perspective is tricked and challenged to see new patterns occurring in between.
Linear shifts and sharp contrasts form the base of this innovative approach to material development and patternmaking and challenge us to “mind the system, but to find the gaps.”
To compliment her vision for this show, van Herpen collaborated with the Berlin artist Esther Stocker, who is known for her manipulation of dimensional geometries. She subverts spatial grids until the mind starts making linear connections that aren’t really there.
For this show Stocker creates a tunnel of visual distortion, in which the models evolve within a conflict of light and shadow. By building up the lines and then distorting them, the eye shifts to see new lines emerge in between. For Stocker, the experience is implied as much by its gaps as it is by its contours.
The distortion created by glitches, short-lived faults in a digital system, also formed the design process of this collection, creating a new unexpected beauty of imperfection.
The optical manipulation within the garments is based on hypnotic repetitive patterns in a minimal palette of black and white only, in order to delineate the silhouettes and textures.
New techniques in this collection include soft 3D hand-casted PU fabrics that are hand-painted through injection moulding and fine expandable laser-cut Mylar fabrics reminiscent of digital glitches in collaboration with architect Philip Beesley.
Credits:
Styling: Patti Wilson
Casting: Maida Boina
Make-up: M.A.C. Pro Team
Hair: Martin Cullen
Music: Salvador Breed
including track 'The Statue' by Machinedrum
Collaborating artist: Philip Beesley
Creative consultant: Jerry Stafford
Collaborating installation artist: Esther Stocker
Shoes in collaboration with Carolin Holzhuber
Press release: Eugene Rabkin & Jerry Stafford
Show direction: Kim Vos & Michelle den Hollander | Bdifferent
Show production: SixUp Paris | N6
Light design: Stefan Prokop & Pol van Veen | Jurlights
Video registration: Fabrice Daville | Premices Films
Backstage video: Ryan McDaniels
Frontstage photography: Team Peter Stigter
Backstage photography: Morgan O'Donovan & Molly SJ Lowe
Special Thanks to:
Fédération Française de la Couture
Warren Du Preez & Nick Thornton Jones
Illustration booklet | Alla Polozenko
Davy Hezemans | Spice PR
Debby van Geffen
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