Best of: London Fashion Week SS18
On the second stop of International Fashion Month, we’ve reached the British Isles, currently subject to quite a bit of political and social upheaval. Brexit and the disastrous fire at Greenfell Towers have proved that Thatcher-era English class politics are still in abundance in the UK, but as it’s been proved before, it’s exactly in moments of political crisis that fashion is the most interesting. As noted by several fashion editors in the past week, identity politics seem to be the most visible theme amongst London’s fashion designers, bringing forth and celebrating the ethnic diversity that London long has prided itself for championing. With the outcome of Brexit still looming indefinably over the country’s garment industry, it’s an uncertain time to do business, yet designers (small and large) are using this moment to assert their continued relevance on the global stage. Fear not if you missed out – we’ve collected all the best bits.
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DANSK Loves Räthel & Wolf
(And) as we look at jewelry design, one of the last perceived gendered bastions in the creative industry, there are two German women turning the thought of jewelry fitting to the body into an idea of jewelry fitting on the body – on any body, using the shapes and movements, skin and muscles as canvas to create a fine and very sensual decor to be worn and explored with an open mindset. Räthel & Wolf, with its designers Sari and Ricarda, are deconstructing a rather conservative approach towards jewelry and how it’s supposed to be embellishing the body, collaborating with artists from various disciplines and confronting their audience by making them rethink structure and beauty, while adding context and craftsmanship as their main characteristics. Their collection, which launched recently at London Fashion Week, proposes a fresh attempt towards jewelry design, making you rethink the ordinary and expand your curiosity. The rather young brand employs a playful and very open minded palette of influences that lifts them far beyond “just jewelry”. It is alluring and intelligent, putting the individual perception of beauty and sensuality in focus. As minimalistic and simple the pieces seem, their application and meaning are ranging spectacularly versatile.
Interview: Charlotte Eskildsen of Designers Remix
Few designers in the Nordic region can claim a longevity as that of Charlotte Eskildsen, founder and creative director of Designers Remix. What started as an impromptu recycled design scheme within the fashion behemoth IC Companys quickly grew into a full-fleshed RTW brand, characterized by Eskildsen’s joy of making and an insistent focus on pulled-back, simple elegance. 15 years and several diffusion lines later, Designers Remix is sold in over 40 countries, and continues to lead the way as one of the Nordic region’s biggest success stories within contemporary fashion. To mark the anniversary (which coincides with our own), we sat down with Eskildsen to discuss the ins and out of fashion business, the importance of independence, and a vision for the future.
Best of: New York Fashion Week SS18
Fashion season is upon us: after commencing in Copenhagen, the global circuit descended last week upon New York City, the first of the “big four” of fashion weeks that also includes London, Milan, and Paris. It’s a notably uncertain time to show fashion in, particularly in the US, which beyond (or because of ?) being challenged by a rather abhorrent political system, has seen many of the central protagonists of NYFW relocate to rivaling Paris or Milan. The hey-days of American Commercialism, where every other finalist from Project Runway would establish some obscure but profitable RTW line, seem today completely faded – which has, fortunately, opened up for more interesting and genre-defying projects in the city. Regardless of couture hierarchies, the Big Apple is still the sartorial city of dreams, with big corporate investors and private clients en masse. This produces an odd ecosystem that houses both large-scale corporate re-inventions (CK, Juicy Couture, Helmut Lang) as well as vestiary social experiments from the downtown underground scene (Vaquera, Eckhaus Latta). While nothing extraordinary can be said of NYFW SS18, it nonetheless offered moments of genius – here, are some of DANSK’s impulsive favorites.
Remembering Pierre Bergé
Pierre Bergé, co-founder of French haute couture house Yves Saint Laurent passed away at age 86 in his south of France residence on September 2017. Bergé who met Yves Saint Laurent in 1958 on the first day the couturier was showing the Trapeze collection for Christian Dior. From that moment, he became the great eminence grise orchestrating Yves Saint Laurent’s career. In 1961, the pair founded their couture house, making it one of the most renown name in the world, helming it until Saint Laurent’s retirement in 2002.
Bergé acted as a true representative of French culture and a reputed philanthropist. He established the Fondation Pierre Bergé – Yves Saint Laurent to conserve the couture house’s archive as well as promoting art pedagogically and supporting artist around the world. Bergé was also a fervent supporter of the Téléthon, a French TV’s event with aim to collect funds for AIDS research. He left us with two new museums dedicated to his soulmate Yves Saint Laurent. Pierre Bergé was a great man who cherished culture and humanity.
Words by Pierre M’Pelé
In Pictures: DANSK 15th Year Anniversary Exhibition – The Gala
We know, we know! It’s been a summer of unashamed self-celebration: our child has become a moody, plump teenage girl, and we felt urged to make a party of it with long-time friends, family, and other collaborators. The latest issue of DANSK tracks 15 years of fashion through many of our peers – photographers, designers, magazine editors – who similarly emerged after the turn of the millennium. It also featured 45 of the most iconic pieces of fashion photography from our vast archive of material, tracing the sexy, the dangerous, and the avant-garde aesthetic DANSK has championed and spearheaded for a decade and a half. But we didn’t just keep this to the pages of a printed magazine – rather, we took to the streets, staging a magnificent exhibition of the photos in a central Copenhagen square to full display to our magical home town. Finally, a grand gala was thrown in collaboration with Pilgrim, Audi, Spies, Ecco og Boozt.com – who helped us invite our very best friends to the breath-taking halls of Ny Carlsberg Glyptoteket for an evening of speeches, food, fun, and games. Naturally, it was an emotional evening, with so much support continuing to go towards the DANSK project from our community, also moving forward. It only confirmed the importance of independent fashion publishing today, particularly in the Nordic region. At DANSK, we’re proud to show that where there’s a will, there’s a way, and to continue to deliver stellar fashion photography and journalism in the years to come. But for now, have a look at some of what went down during the DANSK Gala.
Exhibition: DANSK Celebrating 15 Years
Unless you’ve been living under a stone for the past half a year, you’ve heard the gospel: DANSK is celebrating its 15th birthday, marking its achievements as the world’s most independent fashion magazine. As you can read in our current print issue, out worldwide, it’s been a journey of pain, sweat, and tears – but also of spectacular beauty, daring artistry, and lots and lots of fun. In particular, we’re proud of having spearheaded the ever-evolving search for new limits within fashion photography, a medium that was still in its infant stage when Uffe Buchard and Kim Grenaa emptied their piggy-banks and started a publication back in 2002. In the pages of DANSK, fashion has been represented, digested, and distorted through the photographic eye, discovering some of the biggest model’s of today on the way.
Want: Mykita x 424
As the days are getting shorter, and the last drops of Aperol Spritz have been anxiously extrapolated from our emergency bottle, we’re increasingly catching ourselves looking for cheeky sunny get-aways – and with that, the right accessories. Mykita’s most recent collaboration is hardly suitable for the wet, grey-scale autumns of Northern Europe; rather, they gesture to a Venice Beach-esque frivolousness, or an Ibiza kind of nonchalance. This is perhaps due to FourTwoFour on Fairfax (or 424, as they’re naturally acronymmed), the hyped fashion, art, and jewellery boutique in downtown LA, spearheaded by designer Guillermo Andrade.
Henrik Vibskov: Interview & Review SS18
Henrik was gearing up for the “Revolver: Copenhagen International Trade Show” at the heart of the infamous meatpacking district as DANSK came for a behind-the-scenes and last minutes check up before the SS18 show the next day. Wearing his signature beanie, he welcomed DANSK with a warm smile; his rather relaxed posture and body language did not hint any fact that he had just returned from Tokyo in less than 24 hours: ”I just got back from Japan and prepared for the exhibition at the 21st Century Museum of Contemporary Art.” Referring to 150th Year Anniversary of Japan – Denmark Diplomatic Relations Exhibition, “Everyday Life – Signs of Awareness.”
Livestream: Calvin Klein SS18
It’s New York Fashion Week! Once hailed as the absolute center of RTW, NYFW has in recent years taken a crumble – declared dead, even – as designers en masse have been seen fleeing the Big Apple. Naturally, then, Europe’s favorite enfant terrible and anti-designer Raf Simons chose this Trumpian moment to descend on America’s big city, and revitalize Americana in the most spectacular way through his role as new creative director for Calvin Klein. Without a doubt, Simons presented the best collection of FW17 – and now, time has come for the hard second collection. Don’t despair if your exclusive invite to the show (which last year counted celebs like Julianne Moore, Brooke Shields, and of course Anna Wintour) got lost in the mail – the whole affair can be streamed right here, from the comfort of your futon. Have your ice water ready for 8 pm EST.