Peter Popps

door Fleur Pierets | dec 25, 2013 | Fashion

Peter Popps

Text JF. Pierets Photos Courtesy of Peter Popps

Highly experienced shoe professional, Peter Popps, recently released his own amazing line of shoes. As we speak, Lady Gaga is wearing Peter’s CUBE creation during the shoot for ‘ARTPOP’ by Inez Van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin. An interview. For the love of shoes.

First things first; how does it feel to see Lady Gaga stand in your shoes.
Great! The excitement was huge when they contacted me, because you don’t know what to expect. When you see the movie, my work is shown in just one second of frame. It’s for those who want to see it. Or am I too modestly Dutch now? The real excitement started when confronted with the reactions from family, friends and all other lovely people. People from television started to call me, as they wanted to feature the collaboration. I must say, the emails, phone calls and messages didn’t give me much time to breath. I have been busy for 4 days to answer all of it. I guess I’m not born this way!

What’s the story? Did you know or was it a complete surprise?
I think she has one of the best stylists surrounding her. I mean, there is a group of people working for her hunting around on the internet. I always admired that group as they did find many unknown designers and made them known for a bigger audience. My website had been on-line for 3 weeks and I received an email from Hayley Pisaturo, one of the assistants of Brandon Maxwell, who’s a member from the ‘Haus of Gaga’. She asked me if I was interested in collaboration and a photoshoot for V-Magazine. Inez and Vinoodh would be the photographers. At first I couldn’t believe the email but that same week the selected shoes went to in New York.

Your creations strike me as ‘Kubrick meets Bondagequeen’. Can you tell me something about your inspiration?
First of all, I wanted people to know my name after working all those years on a contract for so many different brands. Second, after 24 years of designing commercial shoes, I never felt a stronger urge to design opposed to the mainstream cultural values as they are forced on us today. I have been highly influenced by magnetic transportation. Take a look at the Roller Skates…introduced in 1760 and at the beginning of the 18-hundreds, London already had covered rollerskatingrings. It took almost 200 years before they did have synthetic wheels. The 1st margin problem I guess. It goes for skateboarding, which was founded by surfers around the 50’s. They invented a way on wooden boxes or boards with roller skate wheels attached to the bottom. Skateboarding gained in such popularity that soon many cities had skateboard-decks or even bigger places. Next to my fascination about those things, I have a weakness for all kinds of science-fiction movies like The Matrix, Star Wars, Mad Max or even Avatar or Men in Black, I’m inspired by movies such as Metropolis, A Space Odyssey (there you go with Kubrick) and Barbarella. But also comics like Superman, Batman or Spiderman. Fantasies, which are based on innovations in and from the future. I’m also influenced by avant-gardism, 60’s space-age design and the amazing art of bondage. With all those inputs I developed the basic for this little collection.

What kind of woman/man do you have in mind while creating?
For the woman who knows how and when to wear them. A woman who knows her vulnerability and who’s confidence. I adore the feminine power that comes from a woman who only gives herself to the one she chooses. Nevertheless I adore every man who’s sensitive enough to walk the in her footsteps.

Are they also meant for men? If not, would you ever design a male shoe?
My designs are for those who can relate to them.When it comes to trans, drags or queens, it makes no difference for me. In the past I designed many shoes in collaboration with Luichiny. Known for it’s high towers and platforms, which have been mainly designed for drags and queens. I loved doing that. But to design shoes that are exclusively for men? That isn’t fun! Four years ago I designed the first accepted sport shoe that did have a zip. Finally, a zip!!! Most men are afraid of being looked at as eccentric, and those who are, are creative in making their own style.

‘My designs are for those who can relate to them. When it comes to trans, drags or queens, it makes no difference for me.’

What’s the personal angle in your work? Fetishism?
No. Innovations from the future. Today it’s a soft mix between bondage and space age but tomorrow it can be the black music from the 70’s. Inspiration is coming from all kinds of directions.

Each of your pieces is unique. What if someone wants to buy them?
I get many requests but I didn’t have any sort of production in mind when I developed them. The sole constructions from the shoes are so complicated in fitting and making, that I’ve always seen them as wearable jewelry and pieces of art. In order to meet all those request I searched for several possibilities but it ended up way to expensive. Also, most people want to be able to walk in them. How strange.

Would you ever consider going into mainstream shoe designing?
I did for 24 years and for different brands, and many of you might have a shoe I designed as freelancer for many companies. Yet I’m done with what the market offers to the customers. It all looks pretty much the same. A copy from a copy from a copy, mixed with some retro and an outrageous price comparing to the quality. Me and many other designers with me are developing a lot of new innovations, which isn’t even remotely comparable with what’s available in the shops. I probably will continue designing commercial shoes but I first want to follow my heart in making a few extra special pieces.

You enjoy 24 years of experience of shoe design for numerous brands. How does you future look like?
As happy as always! Kicking against cultural values that are forced on us and trying to make people smile without judgment, as we need our freedom to feel alive. And maybe I’ll design some shoes in the mean time.

You have 4 main works. Can you give us a peep into your mind regarding number 5?
They will come in black and white and no; Chanel has not been an inspiration here! And I will show the first walkable one.

If you could choose anyone in the entire world, dead or alive, for whom would you like to create a pair? And why?
Just one? Vladimir Putin. Something to hang him up side down as long as it needs until he admits that love is an equal right for everybody.

www.peterpopps.com

This article is featured in Et Alors? Magazine 8.

Read the complete issue here.

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Lukas Beyeler

door Fleur Pierets | sep 25, 2013 | Conceptual Art

Lukas Beyeler

Text JF. Pierets Photos Lukas Beyeler & Patrick Mettraux

We’ve met Lukas Beyeler on Facebook and were instantly touched by both his pictures as his intriguing video work. Lukas is working, amongst others, for Bernard Willhelm and Bruce Labruce and is photographing both famous faces like Pharrell and Amanda Lepore and gorgeous creatures out of the mainstream. We asked him some questions and decided quite instantly he’s one of our most favorite artists.

How old where you when you realized you wanted to be an artist?
Pretty young I guess! As far as I remember, the only thing that interested me was to go to art school. It was the logical path to take at that time because I couldn’t see myself doing anything else!

What was the very first work you’ve made and how did you come up with the idea?
I was 8 or 9 years old and spent three days applying all kind of plastic, cardboard, paper and paint on a small piece of paper. Then Ioffered it to my dad. I still have a very clear vision of this ‘piece’ in my head nowadays. About 10 years later, he showed it to me, I was quite surprised that he kept it for so long somewhere in his office.

Do you consider yourself more a photographer or a video artist?
I guess I’m both. I don’t want to limit myself to one media. Depending on what my intensions are or what is needed, I would choose either one. Photography usually requires less preparation and the postproduction is way shorter as well. But I am not completely satisfied with the still-image; I have the impression that motion picture catches peoples attention in a different way and is a lot more compelling to the spectator.

How do you feel about the recent interest in drag?
It might not be only the ‘Drag’ thing that people find interesting or attractive. Probably what people see at first is a strong character stepping out of the mainstream. The fact of changing identity through cross-dressing is somehow a fantasy and has something surreal. In order to have the courage to do so, one has to be brave and have a strong personality. Drag queens tend to be great entertainers with a certain tragedy, sadness and drama that embodies weakness and vulnerability. These characteristics make it very easy to compare yourself to them. Back in time, role models were strong, untouchable and beyond criticism. Nowadays the ‘New Heroes’ are weak and accessible, self-mockery became something appealing.

What do you hope to achieve by taking a picture of a man in a skirt?
Dunno if I really want to achieve anything, first of all I do the pictures for me and my models. We have to be both happy with the image. Most of the time when you do art, you just do it for yourself; it’s a very egotistical process. Taking a picture of a man in a skirt can be very boring, but taking a picture of a man who enjoys being in that skirt is very exiting. The magic has a lot to do with the model. Do you remember this picture of Iggy Pop in skirt saying: ‘I’m not ashamed to dress ‘like a woman’ because I don’t think it’s shameful to be a woman’, Iggy played perfectly with this ambiguity during his entire career.

Do you have a role model?
Sure, Cicciolina Ilona Staller. She was and still is very inspiring to me.

In the early 70’s, drag queens and transvestites where forbidden in public (Mapplethorpe didn’t publish his Book of Portraits until 1983). Would you be able to work in a different era?
Not showing my work to the public is something I could totally live with. I think I am very shy and not so enthusiastic when the time comes to make any work ‘public’ in a gallery and to be confronted by the critics. Nowadays you can access everything from everywhere, so it was probably more interesting when it was forbidden. It was something reserved for friends, family, and people from the scene itself.

‘Changing identity through cross-dressing is somehow a fantasy and has something surreal. In order to have the courage to do so, one has to be brave and have a strong personality.’

Do you feel privileged to be a spectator in the lives of all those people?
I would much rather say that the respect and the appreciation works both ways. Everything is based on a personal level and both parties contribute towards a final product. When you get along, you are part of their universe and they are a part of mine – it’s a family circle.

Some of your models are well known personalities but most of them are anonymous. Are you searching for a balanced mix or are you working per assignment?
I choose the people that I feel most likely comfortable to work with. No matter if they are celebrities or unknown. I see absolutely no difference working with known/unknown personalities. The anonymous people are tomorrows’ stars and well known people were unknown yesterday. The difference is that well known people don’t knock at your door everyday, especially for the few people you really want to work with. Most of the time you have more artistic freedom when working with anonymous people and more time to work with them. Shootings are longer and you have no restrictions about the final result. Where working with famous people a lot more restrictions apply.

Photographer Gilles Larrain was once asked by one of his clients why he’d taken these horrible photos of such ill, deviant people. What would you answer to such a question?
Haaa haaa… well as Frank Zappa would say: ‘Without deviation from the norm, progress is not possible’. As you know, a lot of people still think like Larrain’s client, because his work is a mirror of the beholder. Anyone who’s comfortable in his life won’t ask this kind of question, I guess it’s the frustration that talks once again.

Amongst many others you worked with Bernhard Willhelm, Walter Pfeiffer and Bruce LaBruce. Who else is on your wishlist and why?
I have no specific wishlist; those artists you mentioned got in touch with me because they probably have seen similarities in our work. Collaborations are always fun as long as you have an artistic freedom in your own contribution and that was the case with all of them.

What future project have you got lined up?
I was just awarded by the Musée Cantonal d’Art de Lausanne. So I’ll be doing an exhibition in this museum in 2014, that’s quite a challenging work to do and I am very excited about it.

www.lukasbeyeler.com

This article is featured in Et Alors? Magazine 7.

Read the complete issue here.

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Paul Boudens

door Fleur Pierets | jun 25, 2013 | Fashion

Paul Boudens

Text JF. Pierets Artwork Paul Boudens

Originally, Paul Boudens wanted to become a fashion designer when he first set foot in Antwerp. Yet fate decided differently (he flunked his entrance exam) and nowadays he’s one of the most wanted graphic designers working together with the Antwerp Fashion Museum and icons like Walter Van Beirendonck and Haider Ackermann. We catch up with him just as he returns from the Otis College of Art and Design in LA.

I read you were in LA for a “provocative discussion about the creation, reinterpretation, and presentation of fashion”. Did you also have some fun?
Yes, we had a LOT of fun! Last year, Otis asked me to run some workshops with the students, but after sending some e-mails back and forth, I wondered if it wouldn’t be cool to take designer Walter Van Beirendonck, photographer Ronald Stoops and make-up artist Inge Grognard along with me. That way we had the four-leaf clover of Antwerp fashion: a fashion designer, a photographer, a make-up artist, and a graphic designer. Otis instantly loved the idea, and even involved the School of the Art Institute of Chicago (SAIC) so it turned out to be quite a tour.

Antwerp was put on the fashion map in 1988. How did that happen?
Well, if I remember correctly: six graduates of the Fashion Department of the Antwerp Royal Academy staged a group fashion show at London Fashion Week. The British press called them the “Antwerp Six” and turned Flemish fashion into a (inter)national phenomenon.

And fashion has become the fourth largest industry in Antwerp since then.
It’s amazing how much talent we have over here.

You work with Walter Van Beirendonck for over three decades now. Was it a well-considered decision?
Not at all. I rolled in by accident. He asked me to create prints for his T-shirts in 1989. I was in my third year of Graphic Design and Illustration. We’ve been working together ever since. His work explores challenging social issues and ignores conventional trends. It’s great working with this kind of explosive energy.

And quickly your fluorescent colors and exciting invitations attracted the attention of other designers. Isn’t it difficult to work for and with so many different creative people?
In the beginning we had a blast kicking all things sacred and bourgeois. Something that came both out of rebellion as out of inability, I must say: the folly of youth! Or the ignorance and arrogance, of course. (laughs) As time goes by you develop a kind of empathic skill and I discovered that I’m good in translating what a designer wants or likes to see, without losing my own persona.

Nevertheless you describe your work as ‘classic with a schizophrenic twist’.
You have to: that’s how you become when working with so many different people. (laughs)

The punk twist has become partly one of your signatures and your work communicates a strong vision. Is it possible to hold onto your outspoken style in an industry saturated by hype?
I never was a punk, you know. But, most designers create an aesthetic through a certain photographic vocabulary that is already very strong. There’s no reason for me to re-invent that. The image has to stay close to what they are standing for. But they trust me enough to play around with their ‘vocabulary’.

Don’t you ever feel frustrated not having more to do with the principle image?
No. I love working in the shadow of a fashion designer, helping to expand their vision. Once in a while, I venture out into the limelight, but it quickly bores me. I’m perfectly happy where I am and with what I do.

In the meantime, you can add Dries Van Noten, Olivier Theyskens, Comme des Garçons, Yohji Yamamoto, Wim Neels, Jurgi Persoons, A.F. Vandevorst, Haider Ackermann, The Antwerp Fashion Academy, Het Zuidelijk Toneel and MoMu, the Fashion Museum of the Province of Antwerp, and many others to your palmarès. What are the things you are most proud of?
I consider every thing I design as a sort of ‘baby’, you know. But, two things are very dear to me. First, there’s my monograph Paul Boudens Works Volume I, which was published in 2003, and second there’s my solo exhibition at The Wapping Project in London in 2010 called ‘Trust Me (I Know What I’m Doing)’. How’s that for an ego boost! (laughs)

In 2001, you were responsible for the art direction of ‘Fashion 2001 Landed’, the ambitious fashion city project in Antwerp with Walter Van Beirendonck and Gerdi Esch. Didn’t you become art director and graphic designer of A Magazine during this project?
You are totally right, my dear. (laughs) We wanted A Magazine to be a fashion magazine that explores the universe of a chosen fashion designer in each issue. We invited a guest curator – an international fashion designer, group or house – to develop innovative, personalized content to express their aesthetic and cultural values. Each issue celebrated the designer’s ethos: their friends, their passion, their stories, emotions, fascinations, spontaneity and authenticity. Back then, we made issues with, among others, Bernhard Willhelm, Hussein Chalayan and Olivier Theyskens, and more recently Maison Martin Margiela, Yohji Yamamoto, Haider Ackermann and Riccardo Tisci from Givenchy. The magazine was always a wonderful race against time. I got the material a little ahead of time, so I could do some preliminary lay-outs for when the designer came to Antwerp, we could work like crazy to do the whole magazine in three or four days. Sadly, I had to say goodbye to the magazine: let’s cite musical differences. (laughs)

‘I started off making cassette covers and cards for friends with Mecanorma letters in a time when colour photocopies were still a novelty. Yes, I’m a dinosaur now.’

Does fashion still make you happy?
You know, fashion itself doesn’t interest me. (laughs) But it’s a fun sector to work in. However, society has changed tremendously in the last ten years and fashion became a really serious business. Everything has to be profitable so things are less intuitive, spontaneous and dangerous. Nevertheless, that’s the way it is and I like the fast pace of fashion. I can’t remember what a holiday feels like because I’m always at work and the fashion show invitations are always lurking around the corner.

Next to fashion show invitations you’re also designing books, catalogs, posters. You obviously love your work.
I just love to create stuff. Maybe it’s because I’m easily bored. I always say: ‘the nicest job is always the next one’.

Do you have other ambitions?
Not really, like I said before: I am where I should be, doing what I should do. I once said that finding the right typeface is like falling in love — I guess that illustrates how I feel about my work.

Were you the class swat or the rebel?
As a teenager I was a total wuss: if I would meet myself now I would kick myself and shout ‘MAN UP!’. However, studying graphic design, I had a lot of fun. Mind you, I flunked my entrance exam to the Antwerp Fashion Academy in the mid-80’s and on a comfortable budget from my parents; I tried some other things like Press and Communication and Translation. Nevertheless, the moment I really had to make an effort and discovered Graphic Design, I knew where my heart was and it went rather smoothly.

You started off in the ‘80’s so I guess the tools to work with were quite different from now?
I started off making cassette covers and cards for friends with Mecanorma letters in a time when colour photocopies were still a novelty. Yes, I’m a dinosaur now. (laughs) I guess you can say the possibilities were different, yet not per definition worse; on the contrary: there was a lot more freedom!

Your work shows taped edges and paint splatters on wallpaper or cotton amongst other materials. The result is both rough and sharp, somewhat twisted and leaving a strange impression. Is that where your handywork comes in?
You know, I started analog then went digital — there was no other choice. But I like that combination: design or art is simply not done just on a computer. When you work with tape, paper and scissors, your mind works differently than when behind a screen. Anyway, I always want to give my work a human touch.

What’s your main philosophy when it comes to your work?
I don’t like designs with a shelf life of one day only. How ironic this might seem while working mainly in fashion, I want my work to be timeless, which is actually impossible. However, my work ages quite well, I think — there’s some good genes in it. (laughs)

And does it always work?
Not always, of course. Most of the time the right image pops up in my head and I try to recreate that. If nothing appears, I’m in trouble, but it happens rarely… (laughs) If it takes a little longer, there’s always my gut feeling, which makes me avoid hypes and go for the long run.

Tell me your future dream.
Yuk, what a difficult question! Let’s say ‘publishing the second volume of my monograph’, maybe? It’s Bald Ambition I guess: look at my head! (laughs)

www.paulboudens.com

This article is featured in Et Alors? Magazine 6.

Read the complete issue here.

Betty Black

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Clare Whittingham

Some describe her work as being “darkly comic, satirical and empowering” but since she commissioned a piece for Lady Gaga, her work has become metalwork must-haves. In between art and fashion, she transforms scrap metal into wearable…..

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Et Alors? magazine. A global celebration of diversity.

Pierre Garroudi

door Fleur Pierets | dec 25, 2012 | Fashion

Pierre Garroudi

Text JF. Pierets Photos Darren Brade

His intricate designs merge the lines between art & fashion and have been worn by some of the world’s biggest style icons from Naomi Campbell to Kate Moss, Scarlet Johansson and Sarah Jessica Parker. He walks the streets of London with his flashmobs and has the tendency to approach his fabrics with the eye of a scientist.

Your résumé reads like a travel trip.
I was born in Iran, lived in Paris for 5 years, 2 years in Lyon, then Shanghai. In Manhattan I ran a Garroudi shop/gallery and stayed there for 14 years. After inhabiting Boca Raton for another year I made my way to London.

How does such a journey influence a person?
I’m a sponge. I try to absorb everything. Having a multicultural background gives me wisdom and inspiration. Knowledge is like light, it opens your eyes to the world.

Why did you end up in London?
London is magical. You should see how the people dress up when they go out. It’s a vessel of inspiration.

When did your carreer start?
I studied in Paris, while working as a hairdresser in my spare time. I moved to New York in 1986. There I joined the Fashion Institute of Technology after working at various retail and design houses. I started my own label in 1993.

Why fashion?
I think fashion is a way of expressing yourself and showing your beliefs and identity because clothes can tell you a lot about a person.

What’s your message?
It’s about being passionate, I believe whatever you put out you get back. My collections are expressions of my own experiences. It’s like looking into a mirror.

Let’s talk technical; you manipulate all your fabric?
Yes. You can’t buy any of my fabric because it doesn’t exist. I love to look at it with the eye of a scientist. The multi-layered matte and sheen silks become second skin to the wearer.

Some call it pioneering fabric-folding work.
It’s all done by hand, which creates an origami effect. I guess it’s quite unique, yes. I believe fabric manipulation it the next evolution in fashion.

And very time consuming.
It is. And you have to be extremely patient to do so. Sometimes it takes me a month to make one dress, but then you create an entirely piece unique. They are one of a kind.

You are known for using interesting and diverse models, which is a breath of fresh air in the fashion industry.
I think it’s generally better to have a diverse selection of models. We live in a world that’s mixed, I mean half of the world is Asian, and only, maybe twenty percent of the world is white.

Where do you get your inspiration?
I’m inspired by talented and creative people and by the sheer beauty of humanity. I try to learn from every person I meet. For example, my life won’t be the same after I talked to you and vise versa.

‘I took my collection ‘Red-Stopping’ to some of London’s most distinguished avenues and tubes.’

What kind of women wears your designs?
Naturally the types of women who wear these types of clothes have to be self-secure and strong, have confidence.

Why?
Because you can’t go out there and wear something creative and be shy at the same time. The women who like my clothes use them as a tool to express themselves.

Can I call it wearable art?
I leave it up to you how to call it. I try to make things that are wearable. Expensive, but wearable.

Everybody is talking about the bad economy. Does it influence you?
It does, yes, but I think that everything happens for a reason. Anything good or bad, it teaches you a lesson. Once you learned the lesson you can move forward.

How?
I’m doing a lot of research. Reading up about the business and the marketing side of fashion. These days you need to be on all of the social networks, Facebook, Twitter, Linked-In. I’m looking for different ways to present my designs.

The fashion industry is changing nowadays.
The new generation want things much faster, right away, they don’t want to wait, they’re just looking for something they want, they get it, they move on. We don’t have time. Do you have time to read all the blogs, do you have time to read all the fashion magazines? This is going to reflect on fashion shows, on the fashion industry.

You already took your clothes from the runway into the streets?
And called it flash-mobs. With my cast of models and dancers, I took my collection ‘Red-Stopping’ to some of London’s most distinguished avenues and tubes.

And it became a big success.
I loved it so much I did it again with the ‘Turquoise Collection’/Beauty of the Sea’ conveying an aesthetically pleasing experience of creatures born of a mystical island, lost at sea. It was raining that day. That was nice.

The future looks bright?
I’m sure it does. The more creative the better so feel free to write that I’m interested in any kind of collaboration. I try to learn from everybody!

www.pierregarroudi.com

This article is featured in Et Alors? Magazine 4.

Read the complete issue here.

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Niels Peeraer

door Fleur Pierets | jun 25, 2012 | Fashion

Niels Peeraer

Text JF. Pierets Photos Dirk Alexander

“I’m confused, I’m sitting here on the sofa, the heart my boyfriend drew on the mirror is still there, my heart in a rice cooker. I think I’ll marry him again at lunch. My cat is sleeping but it’s already been 4 days. Well, I have to go to the supermarket anyway. Guess technology isn’t ready for pancake teleportation”.

This is the diary entry from the main character of Niels Peeraer’s collection. The darling child of the Antwerp Academy’s graduating class of 2011 presents his graduate work Guess technology isn’t ready for pancake teleportation, consisting of couture-like tweed silhouettes, handmade leather armors, accessories, clothes and Japanese wooden sandals. All in candy-colored pastels. His concept revolved around the idea of a young boy who has an imaginary boyfriend and prepares to marry him every day. He plays video games all day long and goes to the supermarket in his pyjamas. He wears the armour that his video games-heroes are clad in, combines this with his grandmothers couture jackets (they’re actually too small but he’s very attached to them) and eats nothing but cupcakes and donuts.

Peeraer’s collection blends sophisticated Chanel-esque and a super-cute look with an ease that makes you curious about what’s going to happen next. Although the pictures show girlish boys wearing soft pink clothes, and cupcakes and teddy bears are placed just right, Niels is the only one who will never mention the words “unisex” or “androgynies” because he wants to achieve the exact opposite. “I want to create beautiful pieces that stand on their own for whomever feels related or touched by them”, he says.

Born in a tiny village in Belgium, Niels later moved to Paris: “Intentionally I wanted to move to Tokyo but plans changed as I found love in Paris. I just love the possibilities here: good Asian restaurants, cosmopolitan people. It’s very vibrant. And of course, residing in such a romantic city with the one you love is the most wonderful thing ever.” Part from moving out of love, Niels also thinks that some countries aren’t ready to appreciate his work or who he is. At least not yet. “I never really intend to shock people but I really want to wear the feel of the moment. When I wake up and feel like putting on a tutu, so be it. In Paris I don’t stand out as much as in Belgium so that’s a good start, but I love Tokyo, they think I’m super cute.” Influenced and inspired by Geisha’s and Japanese boys, Niels has always been thrilled by Asia, mainly Japan. In interviews he sometimes says he was a Japanese Geisha in his previous life.

For him that’s the closest description he can give for how this affection feels. Although not influenced by idols – “I think it limits you a lot” – he’s inspired by people in his everyday life and if he would really have to call someone an idol, it would be Terence Koh, a Canadian Chinese artist. One of his philosophies is “I will marry marry marry again, till marriage out of love becomes as common as drinking water”.

‘When I wake up and feel like putting on a tutu, so be it.’

His 3rd year Bachelor collection “Kizokusyakai no Dorei, geisha n°58-65” was granted the “Innovation Award” by Anne Chapelle (the leading woman behind Ann Deumeulemeester and Haider Ackerman) and was selected as a finalist for ITS#9 (International Talent Support, IT). His Master collection Guess technology isn’t ready for pancake teleportation won 5 awards which included a limited edition handbag collaboration with Delvaux. He had a personal gallery exhibition at MOMU (fashion museum, Antwerp), FFI movex Award for the leather usage and Ra Award (included showroom in Paris SS 2012). Did I mention Niels just reached his twenties? What does – let’s call it awardness – do to someone who only just graduated? “I’m very thankful for the appreciation of course, but if I learned one thing from my parents it’s to be humble. I don’t think too highly of myself. To get the highest grades of your class and to win all these awards frankly doesn’t mean that much when you compare it to this huge fashion scene. I’m going to make more than one collection per year but I don’t want to go crazy in following the madness of making four in the same amount of time. I think the fashion industry became too fast – the quality can’t keep up with it. So I want to try to get rid of that pressure and design beautiful pieces that are slightly more expensive. I would like people to buy just one beautiful piece instead of ten pieces of junk at H&M, having to throw them away after a year.”

At the moment Niels is starting a label for leather accessories in Paris. “Becoming a designer was always one of my dreams and all I can hope for is to actually make money by creating the collections I love so much. And maybe one day my designs will be sold in Asia. Wouldn’t that be amazing..”

www.nielspeeraer.com