Iris van Herpen’s future

It is definitely a big year for Iris van Herpen: a haute couture collection that was presented in Paris and was characterized by the highest level of craftsmanship, the publication of a book in November, the major retrospective Iris van Herpen. Sculpting thesenses, which will be held at the Museum of decorative Arts (Mad) in the French capital from November 29, 2023, to April 28, 2024. There is also a film project in the works, the details of which are still top secret. «Yes, there are a lot of things happening right now» the designer told MFF in this interview, revealing details of initiatives in the pipeline for the coming months.

How do you feel about the exhibition that the Museum of Decorative Arts has dedicated to you?

I am very excited about it because I have been preparing it for four years. It will be a thorough overview of my work set up in 12 rooms, showing my evolution from the beginning to the present. At the same time, there will be room for the disciplines that interest me most, such as science and architecture, as well as the people who inspire me or with whom I work in my atelier.

How did it feel to be immersed in the archives?

I rediscovered things about myself, better understood the evolution of the manual labor in my collections. Memories and emotions resurfaced. However, this process of reflection in preparation for the exhibition was also the stable project I clung to during the pandemic, when everything was very precarious and we did not know what to expect. Having time to think about the content of the exhibition allowed me to go deeper in my choices.

Does this reflection on fashion find an echo in your latest couture collection, architectonics?

For this latest collection, I thought mainly about architecture, a discipline I have always been interested in, but which is now more present than ever. I was inspired by the work of Jacques Rougerie, the visionary «architect of the sea» and also by Oceanix, the floating city by the Danish Architect Bjarke Ingels, which shows that the once utopian water cities are now an absolute necessity because of climate change. Faced with the vulnerability of metropolises, it is essential to think about how to adapt them to the future. The same goes for fashion.

How can fashion adapt to the future?

Like architecture. By looking ahead, thinking about materials and production processes. However, by also imitating nature, which can give us guidelines.

Nature is a recurring theme in your fashion universe. However, you also often mention technology. How can they coexist in the fashion industry?

By changing the way we think about fashion. The business model should focus not only on growth projects but also on quality. Nature does not think only in terms of expansion, but in terms of regeneration and cycles. The 21st century’s obsession with getting bigger and bigger is not good. Nature itself teaches us that certain organisms that seek only to expand become viruses. The naturalist and writer David Attenborough also talks about this change in approach in his books. He is one of my heroes.

What do you do to follow this philosophy?

I decided, for example, to focus only on couture and not to do ready-to-wear collections. We also use sustainable materials. Everything is calibrated, there is no overstocking, and finally we adopt a collective spirit. My atelier is in Amsterdam, we all work together, so we share our strategy and control on every step of the creation. It is a different way of working. We will never be a big commercial company.

So you do not have stores in anticipation?

No, that is the principle of couture, after all. The customer comes to our atelier. This is also a sustainable act.

Did Beyoncé, who wore your Heliosphere Gown on her Renaissance World Tour, come to your atelier then?

No, she was too busy, so we made an exception for her. I am so proud to see her wearing one of my dresses. Her style is a kaleidoscope of elegance that inspired me and my team in every stitch, bead and petal during this amazing 700-hour journey to create the Halo gown. I went to see her at her show and was blown away. It was a spectacular, incredible concert. Beyoncé embodies female empowerment. She shows that confidence comes from within and that beauty thrives in diversity.

Do you have other projects in the pipeline besides the exhibition?

A book coming out in November about 16 years of collections. A film, but I cannot say anything because it is still top secret. It is a wonderful project, you will know more at the end of the year. Finally, maybe a perfume. I have been thinking about it for a long time and I think the time is right. (All rights reserved)