I recently came across your designs for the first time at the Felicities press day and was amazed that your SS10 collection, ‘La Ville Sauvage’ was themed entirely around orchids. What made you choose this flower as your inspiration?
The “prettiness” of my clothes is a fervent revolt against mainstream ideology, especially when so much in fashion looks same. I recently read Vivienne Westwood’s biography and was particularly taken by the idea that she champions “an outsider” in her work- the hooker, the dandy, and so on. It struck me how mainstream and boring these archetypes that she, and many others still – like McQueen and Galiano – often use to challenge and revolt the conservative mainstream elite. Unlike anywhere else, British fashion is foremost about being radical. As a foreigner with colonialist roots to Britain, Indonesia, Holland and Cape Malay slaves, it dawned on me that many of the themes that I toy with are about the new challenges to a conservative British society in retreat: globalisation and the encompassing neo-imperialist ideas of “being foreign, the exotic, and the savage”. The orchid is a metaphor for the exotic “otherliness” of my muse; both the contempt and perverted desire for the “savage”. Or, maybe I was just a little curious to see what an exotic English summer landscape would look like.
Imagery throughout courtesy of Jacob Kimmie
I read the biography on your website which states that you haven’t had any official fashion training, which is quite remarkable. When did you realise that you already possessed the skills (that others spend a lot of time and money learning) to produce such breathtakingly feminine collections?
I can’t remember the first time I picked up a needle and thread! I grew up in the townships of South Africa during its apartheid hey-day when we used to toyi-toyi (the protest dance you used to see in SA) in the streets to protest against the fascist establishment. It was during this time that, as a child, I used to make clothes for my cousin’s dolls (underneath the table) with the off-cut fabric while my aunts were making dresses for bridesmaids and dancers! They used to work in dress factories and would later buy fabric remnants to re-create the dresses to go dancing in. I guess my love for a type of narrative and decorative mood in fashion developed then alongside a desire to create clothes that celebrates femininity, a hyper-femininity against all odds maybe. You can’t really achieve that without knowing how to fit a dress on somebody, that instinctive way you handle fabric at your finger tips. I can’t design clothes from a self-expression point of view. It’s so self indulgent and boring in context of moving fashion forward! I used to be embarrassed that I didn’t go to university (I couldn’t afford to) to develop the “vocabulary” that seems to be the most important thing in fashion today. I sometimes wonder what I would have been like if I did…
A master’s degree in fashion means nothing to me. If you can make a dress you can eat. Why are so many fashion graduates not in work?
How did you break into the fashion industry, and do you have any advice for our readers on things they can do to stand out in the industry?
I don’t believe that you can break into fashion in that way. Yet so much of it does. You don’t suddenly realise one morning that you want to be dress maker or tailor, let alone a designer. My look comes across as that of a very established designer. There seems to be this thing in British fashion that when you start, you’ve got to be all angles, tucks and pleats. And hang out with cool fashion people at cool fashion places waiting to be discovered and be included on style.com to be seen as successful. I think this is because I know what my vision is, and what I’m trying to achieve together with a team who “gets” it. Having PR who believes in you is critical. I grew up in SA where you don’t get breaks. You have to work to achieve, let alone have a voice. Having a voice in fashion is pure indulgence. To be asked questions like these are a privilege. I have the good fortune being able to show off-schedule, which I love, because it’s smaller and edgier. I don’t believe in working hard. Work smart! Don’t for once believe that a degree gives you the tools to cut it. Doing fashion without skills is like looking for an extraordinary treasure without a map.
What is your inspiration for FW10, and what can we expect from your upcoming LFW fashion show/presentation?
My studio is notorious for not having any pictures or mood boards up for collections which might seem bizarre for some considering that what I do is almost storybook like. My collections start with a mood, and I always seem to search for that in music. For FW10 I came across a funky remix of “It’s Yours”. It made me think of temples and religion! So I guess I’m going spiritual this season (smiles). I’m also collaborating with Ginta Siceva, a brilliant leather artist who’s designing breath taking accessories for the show and Aspinals Of London who supplies us with awesome leather gloves. And my good mate Steve Martland, the ultra-left wing radical classical composer might be adjusting a score… watch this space!
How do you unwind after the stresses of LFW?
Unwind? What’s that?!
What has been your career’s biggest highlight to date?
My mum flying in the day before my show and seeing my work on an international platform for the first time is my career highlight. In fashion, until you really crack it, it’s not always easy sailing. And even though some things can be overcome by throwing money, time and energy at it, nothing beats the feeling – the soaring delight – of approval from where it really counts. Oh, and seeing Alek Wek in my bullet dress, and then Kaya Scodelario in it and then Ellie Goulding wearing the magenta dress from the orchid collection in Just Jack and…
Is there anything in particular that you are looking forward to accomplishing this decade?
Besides that I’d really like to tie Sarah Mower by the pussy-bow tails of her blouse to Colin McDowell’s trouser belt loops, I’d like to address your question regarding unwinding after the stresses of fashion week.
Tags:
'La Ville Sauvage', Alek Wek, Aspinals Of London, Ellie Goulding, Felicities Designer Showroom, Galiano, Ginta Siceva, Just Jack, Kaya Scodelario, lfw, McQueen, Pre LFW interview: Jacob Kimmie, Sarah Mower, Steve Martland
