Iris van Herpen Catwalk Couture Show Paris FW2018

In a world facing depleted natural resources, Iris van Herpen’s fascinating biomimicry world looks increasingly relevant. As the movement for lab-grown materials continues to gather momentum, van Herpen this season explored synthetic biology and the intertwining relationships between the organic and the inorganic, biology and technology. The designer even had a term for it: “Syntopia.”
As a prelude, she handed the floor to like-minded Amsterdam-based artist duo Lonneke Gordijn and Ralph Nauta of Studio Drift to create a kinetic sculpture. Suspended above the runway — and based on the concept of a glass bird — the installation was composed of rows of glass bars suspended by invisible wires that made them move like wings. It made for some novel runway entertainment, but the show really took flight with van Herpen’s creations based on interpretations of a feather’s architecture.
The designer used chronophotography, a technique from the Victorian era that captures movement in several frames, to guide the draping of a garment, breaking the process down to emulate the layering of a bird’s feather on sculpted dresses with undulating hems.
Other looks had an ethereal underwater feel, seen in rippling dresses with a classical allure, and luminous cape gowns in sheer silk organza, their liquid-coated pleats echoing the lines of the kinetic installation.
The Syntopia theme also played out in a series of gray coats and dresses in laser-cut wool fused with sections of intertwined digitally designed and traditional weaves, fringes of leather tassels swinging from the hems.

Iris van Herpen Catwalk Fashion Show Haute Couture Paris SS2018

This season Iris van Herpen presented a serene, more wearable collection. Despite the labor-intensive nature of the clothes with the opening Foliage dress requiring 260 hours of 3-D printing and endless other high-tech processes — there was an immateriality to the collection.
The designer stuck to classic couture shapes. But the structures looked ultra fragile, with van Herpen focusing on silk-tulle bases covered in geometric formations of laser-cut fabrics, as well as her signature exoskeleton structures.

She used as her starting point the aerial photography of Thierry Bornier and Andy Yeung, among others, along with the organic floating paper sculptures of Dutch artist Peter Gentenaar, with a selection of them suspended from the ceiling of the show venue. The final dress resembled a living version of one of his works.

Iris van Herpen Haute Couture Catwalk Show SS2017

An all black room covered in zigzag white lines awaited us at Iris van Herpen couture show today. A show that was about so much more than just presenting a new collection. The New York Times already titled it a ‘meditation on distortion, visual and psychological’. Iris herself named it “the imperfections of systems and structures in both the physical and digital worlds”. What we witnessed was an impressive line-up of true pieces of art. Using the newest of techniques, laser cutting and 3-D handcasting, Iris came up with the most delicate geometric ‘dresses’ that through optical illusion seemed to pulse to the rhythm of the music. Dresses perhaps with a simple fit, but extraordinary in their execution. Full of nature inspired patterns and textures with some stunning, mind blowing silhouettes. Designed to make a statement, explore the possibilities of fashion technology and leave room for multiple interpretations. Tempting haute couture customers to actually buy and wear one of these dresses is the least of Iris van Herpens worries. She designs for the love of art and her creations end up in museums more often than they do at red carpets. A place where the final piece, a transparent water drop / crystal splash dress, definitely deserves a focus spot. A design a museum visitor could stare at for hours, while it changes with the rays of light. A modern technology driven design Iris managed to turn into a dress that actually spoke about delicacy, elegancy and sensuality. “Oh my god. These Iris Van Herpen pieces just changed the game”, said an attendee on Twitter. And Iris may have done just that.

Iris van Herpen Haute Couture FW2016 Backstage

It was an unforgettable and magical show/presentation yesterday at Iris van Herpen in the l’Oratoire du Louvre, an 18th-century Protestant church. The Dutch designer stood her models on concrete plinths as Japanese musician Kazuya Nagaya brushed his golden Zen bowls, producing pings and drones that reverberated through the space. That magical vibe was also created by the use of thin fabrics and special textiles used fro frothy and ethereal dresses in the palest colors, the simplest a long sheath resembling morning dew on wet skin. We took a close look backstage at the show.

Iris van Herpen Haute Couture Catwalk Show Paris FW2016

Dutch designer presented a moment of calm, sublime beauty and futuristic fashion wizardry during the haute couture week in Paris. Her models stood on concrete plinths as Japanese musician Kazuya Nagaya brushed his golden Zen bowls, producing pings and drones that reverberated through the L’Oratoire du Louvre, an 18th-century Protestant church.
Sound waves were the idea behind the collection, specifically cymatics, the science of visualizing sound waves into geometric patterns. Yet one needn’t understand acoustic dynamics to appreciate Van Herpen’s representation: frothy and ethereal dresses in the palest colors, the simplest a long sheath resembling morning dew on wet skin.
Van Herpen explained that the latter dress was achieved by embedding tens of thousands of Swarovski in liquid silicone. She did the same with hand-blown glass bubbles, producing a trembling, shimmering, extraterrestrial tutu.

Van Herpens world is one of laser cutting, 3-D printing and fibers five times thinner than human hair. The striped organza for halter dresses, densely pleated and then arranged in rows and swirls had to give the impression of sound waves. They were stunning.

Iris van Herpen Catwalk Fashion Show Womenswear FW2016

Where does reality end and do dreams begin? Or are we all just living in a dream? The subject of consciousness has often been a source of inspiration for designers. As it was for Iris van Herpen’s collection ‘lucid’ she presented in Paris today. For fall the Dutch designer explored the concept of lucid dreaming (within a lucid dream, the dreamer is conscious of the dream state and therefore is able to exert a degree of control on what is happening). A process which Iris often experiences herself while draping her creations. “When I design, the draping process most of the time happens to me unconsciously. I see lucid dreams as a microscope with which I can look into my unconsciousness. In this collection, I have tried to bring my state of ‘reality’ and my state of dreaming, together,”
she stated. An interesting starting point.
Seventeen large optical light screens on the runway created some kind of optical illusion, mirroring both the audience and the models and delivering an experience both intimate and poetic. Unlike at any other straightforward fashion show the audience’s point of perspective constantly changed, created just that feeling of not knowing (un)reality. Were we looking at a reflecting or a real model?
Fashion wise Iris used two different design technique, coming up with laser cut lucid looks (for which she collaborated with Philip Beesley) that are connected with translucent flexible tubes, creating a glistering bubble-like exoskeleton around the wearer’s body and phantom dresses, created made with a super light tulle to which iridescent stripes are fused, shimmering the silhouette illusory. Fashion forward as Iris is, she once again worked with on some 3D pieces, creating a dress stitched from 5,000 3D printed elements (a true work of art). Silhouettes were voluminous and feminine, the color palette a range of nudes, green and grey. And even if you leave out all of the above, forget that source of inspiration, put aside those futuristic techniques, you were simply looking at a selection of absolute stunning designs.

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Iris van Herpen Catwalk Fashion Show Paris Womenswear SS2016

Had Iris van Herpen shown models in vacuum plastic bags on her runway before. Today actress Game of Thrones Gwendoline Christie played part in her decorum. The tough, tall actrice who you’d hardly identify with the fragile work of Iris, motionless lay on a tree to which her dress was woven throughout the whole show, as the collection was inspired by the way plants grow. Quaquaversal Iris named her collection. Latin for “going off in all directions”, something the 31-year old Dutch designer can identify herself with, collaborating with artists in so many different disciplines. For this collection Iris was coached by François-Henri Pinault, the big guy at French luxury goods holding company Kering, part the Andam Award she won last year. An influence perhaps that made Iris put more focus on wearibility and fashion, cause in this collection they played a bigger part than ever before. Like in all her designs today craftsmanship and technology worked together perfectly today. Skirts, tops and dresses looked impeccable shown in a sophisticated palette of nudes, greys and silver hues. Standout pieces by themselves, yet to think those strong designs were created by laser-cutting and hand-weaving made them all the more impressive.

Iris van Herpen FW2015 Backstage

Take a look backstage at the show of Iris van Herpen yesterday at the Palais de Tokyo in Paris.

Iris van Herpen Catwalk Fashion Show Paris FW2015

Iris van Herpen titled her fall collection “Hacking Infinity”, inspired by terraforming, or the process of transforming the biosphere of other planets to make them like Earth. The translation was not immediately visible in the clothes.
There were new fabric experiments — a translucent stainless-steel weave and a honeycomblike 3-D handwoven material with frayed edges. Both were introduced in the opening look, a sheer sleeveless top and short skirt. It laid a foundation for the soft vs. hard contrasts that ran through the show and climaxed with an off-the-shoulder bustier jumpsuit with a wide belt of sheer optical lighting film that distorted the waist — a novel way to achieve an hourglass figure.
Among the other showcase pieces were digitally fabricated dresses made from spiky black plastic, created with architect Philip Beesley, and towering shoes sprouting chunky crystals on the soles, a collaboration with Japanese shoe designer Noritaka Tatehana (of Lady Gaga fame).

Iris Van Herpen Catwalk Paris Reportage SS2015

Take a look at the small reportage we shot behind the scenes at the Iris van Herpen show in Paris. Which took place at the topfloor of the Centre Pompidou.

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