Iris van Herpen, Hypnagogic harmony lensed by Carla van de Puttelaar

I am a huge fan of the stunning couture designs of the Dutch fashion designer Iris van Herpen. I guess you've noticed that already as I wrote earlier several blogs about her fantastic work. Iris is known for fusing technology with traditional Haute Couture craftsmanship. Today I would like to share with you this fantastic photo 'Hypnagogic harmony', lensed by photographer Carla van de Puttelaar. Be Inspired .......

More about Iris van Herpen

Iris van Herpen perceives Haute Couture as a transformative language, an interdisciplinary entity that emerges from the space in which innovation and craftsmanship interlace. The symbiotic relationships found in nature’s intricate web, the invisible forces that structure architectural patterns, and the mercurial dance in which the body and mind intersect are influences that shape the visionary creative process.

The Iris van Herpen maison was founded in 2007 and showcases its collections bi-annually at Paris Haute Couture Week as a member of the Fédération de la Haute Couture. The brand stands for slow fashion with a multi-disciplinary approach towards collaborations with artists, architects and scientists. Each collection is a quest to venture beyond today's definition of a garment, exploring new forms of femininity for a more meaningful, diverse and conscious fashion for the future. 

Trained in classical ballet, Iris van Herpen contemplates movement as a metamorphic force which in a duet with fashion, can extend the forms of the human body. Pioneering techniques and materials evolve into liquescent shapes and intricate layered textures, sculpting graceful silhouettes that reflect a woman's myriad of movements.

Celebrating female empowerment, Van Herpen’s vision is guided by inspirational women such as the brand’s global clientele and muses like Cate Blanchett, Beyoncé and Scarlett Johansson. Bespoke designs are meticulously crafted for a global clientele from within the illustrious Amsterdam atelier. Organic, innovative femininity is expressed through state-of-the-art couture that embraces individuality powerfully and fearlessly.

Van Herpen’s work is deeply rooted within nature. Water, air and earth are elements that leave traces in the sensorial garments. The infinite properties alluding to movement such as the unbound forces and fluidity behind water or its crystalline formations are facets that flow into the designs. Through biomimicry, the maison visualises and materialises the invisible forces that shape our world, perpetuating a deep sense of organic presence.

Captivated by architecture and how we embody space and inhabit sculpture, Van Herpen recognises both fashion and architecture as expressions of self, culture and community that link to the times and fabric of society. Changes of perception provoked through dichotomies between the hard and soft, structure and movement encompass the poetics of the brand’s craft.  

      

Transcending boundaries within the industry by liberating our sense of limitations, the maison is known for binding emerging technologies like elaborate 3-D printing or laser-cutting with delicate handwork such as embroidering or draping, creating a hybrid of Haute Couture. ‘Craftolution’, coined as the evolution of craftsmanship and the embracement of change form the core of the brand’s identity, fusing layered lightness, three-dimensionality, and undulating volume into ethereal creations. 

Through cross-pollination of seemingly segregated disciplines the alchemic atelier is a laboratory for new luxury. By weaving in symbiotic collaborations with artists from all stripes such as the choreographer Damien Jalet, the performative artist Björk, the kinetic artist Anthony Howe, the trans-disciplinary architect Philip Beesley or the computational artist Neri Oxman the maison stretches the boundaries of fashion. 

Artistic collaborations from the likes of Lady Gaga or Tilda Swinton drive a united effort to evolve self expression in ways that were previously unimaginable. The immaculate creations extend their reach at exhibitions in world-leading museums including the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Victoria & Albert Museum in London and Palais de Tokyo in Paris. 

Stitching the intricacies of craftsmanship with the pioneering spirit of innovation, Iris van Herpen blurs the lines between art and design. Celebrating an inclusive approach where collaboration creates community, the maison integrates sustainability as second nature. The scope for imagination is perpetual through the eyes of Iris van Herpen.

Thank you for reading this blogpost.

Source: IRIS VAN HERPEN
Photos: courtesy of Iris van Herpen

First photo:
Photography: Carla van de Puttelaar
Styling: Tobias Heinrichs
Models: Julie Hoekstra I Adama Jobe I Eyes Rodgers
Make-up: Eva Agerbeek I House Of Orange Agency
Hair: Eva Agerbeek I House Of Orange Agency