Backstage/Frontstage - Modemuseum Hasselt

The exhibition Backstage / Frontstage, that is open from 22nd September 2018 to the 17th of March 2019 at the Hasselt Fashion Museum, offers a look behind the scenes of the fashion shows phenomena.
In the backstage, a place that the public rarely sees, magic arises: models, stylists, make-up artists and designers are united in one creative hub that works towards the start of the show. The backstage images of the photographer Marleen Daniëls are the reason for the exhibition. Daniel's images, photographed largely analogue and dating from the period 1988-2008, are unique memories of a time when shows were accessible only to a select audience. Using video, photography and silhouettes from leading designers and fashion houses such as Dries Van Noten, Yohji Yamamoto, Dior and John Galliano you will be guided through the backstage of the iconic fashion shows and fashion scene.

www.modemuseumhasselt.be

Superstition - Marres

Lilibeth Cuenca Rasmussen

Marres Superstition exhibition 
22 september - 25 november

When you spill salt, do you throw some over your shoulder? Do you knock on wood when you want something good to happen or blow out birthday candles after making a wish? What about stepping on sidewalk cracks, killing spiders, shattering mirrors and opening an umbrella indoors?

Curator, artist and magic thinker Erich Weiss assembled a wonderful cast for this subject: Nina Beier & Simon Dybbroe Møller, Otto Berchem, Pierre Bismuth, Santiago Borja, Ulla von Brandenburg, Stefan Brüggemann, Lilibeth Cuenca Rasmussen, Keren Cytter, Uri Geller, Joachim Koester, Germaine Kruip, Nils Nova, Joanna Piotrowska, John Stezaker and Mungo Thomson.

Artists have always had a fascination with phenomena that defy rational explanation. The surrealists were obsessed with the analysis and creative possibilities of dream states. Authors including Antonin Artaud, William S. Burroughs, and Alan Ginsberg explored (sometimes with help of drugs) the boundaries between reality and fiction. Directors Ingmar Bergman and Andrei Tarkovski captured the way superstition informed the imagination and consciousness.

Text courtesy of Marres, images brankopopovicblog.
 www.marres.org

Craig Green Windmills - AW18 Campaign

Craig Green AW18 Campaign
Photography Dan Tobin Smith
Styling Robbie Spencer

Following the flaming sculptures of Spring/Summer 2018, British designer Craig Green has unveiled the campaign images for his Fall/Winter 2018 collection.
This season’s campaign features 13 meters high 'windmill' constructions erected on a cliff’s edge. Windmills as a poetic metaphor of the past that meets the future, instruments of yesterday that thanks to wind energy have become tomorrow.

“I have always thought that windmills are interesting – something that existed in the past as a vital industrial machine powered by nature, a kind of very early use of sustainable energy-powered production,” Craig Green.

Craig Green for Moncler Genius SS 2019

The Craig Green Spring/Summer 2019 collaboration with Moncler was presented during Milan Fashion Week.

Be Ready - Milan Fashion Week SS/19

The Milan-based production company The Blink Fish returns with the latest fashion film produced for the Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana (National Chamber of Italian Fashion).

Shot to celebrate Milan Fashion Week SS/19 (18-24 September, 2018), Be Ready sees Ukrainian model Nastya Timos determined to be in top shape for the upcoming Milanese fashion season. Frantically trying on outfits, rehearsing for selfies and relentlessly working out, the result is a humorous and light-hearted interpretation of the excitement taking place during fashion week and the preparation involved.

As is customary for the Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana, Be Ready supports the local design scene by featuring a wide range of brands based in Italy, from emerging to more established, namely Arthur Arbesser, Gabriele Colangelo, GCDS, Giannico, Lucio Vanotti, Marco de Vincenzo, Paula Cademartori, Sara Battaglia, Stella Jean and Vivetta.

The Blink Fish and the Camera Nazionale della Moda Italiana have been collaborating since 2016, developing an increasingly strong online presence with fresh and relevant video content with each fashion season. Some of their most recent works, such as Start the Buzz and Waiting Room, have been internationally recognised and selected by several film festivals, including Berlin Fashion Film Festival, Aesthetica Short Film Festival and the Muse Creative Awards.


About The Blink Fish 
Founded in 2012, The Blink Fish is a creativity and production company with a wide range of young talents and projects under its wing. The company focuses primarily on fashion films, commercials, music videos, short films and documentary films, taking care of the whole video production, from creativity to post-production and distribution phases. The Blink Fish has won numerous awards at international film festivals, praised for their ability to turn concepts into high quality images, making emotions visible, and giving tangible shape to abstract thoughts.

Lichting 2018

Ferry Schiffelers

On Friday 7 September, AMFI [Amsterdam Fashion Institute Amsterdam] graduate Ferry Schiffelers won Lichting 2018, the prize for upcoming fashion talent. In a catwalk show, in the middle of Museumplein in Amsterdam, 14 fashion graduates presented their graduation collections to national and international fashion professionals. Although all 14 designers showed promising proposals, the jury panel chose Ferry Schiffelers, the most promising talent in the Netherlands. He won the Lichting 2018 Award worth € 10,000, made available by the Meester Koetsier Foundation.

With his Défilé De Deuil collection Ferry combines his fascination for rituals around funerals and his great love for feminine beauty. By linking this vision to Victorian mourning portraits, in which widows were portrayed in extremely elaborate mourning dresses, he created a modern group portrait in which different generations of women show the power of femininity.

The winner of the Lichting 2018 Award was chosen by a renowned international panel consisting of Alvise Bullo [Junior Research Manager Creative Talents LVMH Fashion Group], Christopher New [Course Leader BA Fashion Menswear and Fashion Program Academic Quality Coordinator Central Saint Martins], Filep Motwary [Independent curator and author, photographer, fashion features editor Dapper Dan Magazine], Gry Nissen [Creative Director].

The 14 finalists of Lichting 2018 are: Berend Brus, Pia Walter, Nathan Klein, Jasmijn Taken, Timothy Scholten, Yuki Ito, Sonia Oet & Line Arngaard, Yaroslav Glazunov, Jessica van Halteren, Rena Jansen, Nina Pen, Maria van Steenoven, Mathieu Jonker.

Lichting is an initiative of HTNK and Amsterdam Fashion Week. Lichting was launched in 2007 and each year the best graduate collection of the country gets awarded. Each school out of seven Dutch fashion academies sends out two graduates, who get to show selection of five outfits on the runway during Amsterdam Fashion Week. Prior to the show, they have to present and defend their work in front of an international jury. 

More information: www.lichting.nl

Viktor & Rolf - Kunsthal Rotterdam

For the past 25 years the collaboration between Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren has led to extraordinary fashion creations of timeless beauty. On the occasion of the 25th anniversary of Viktor&Rolf, the Kunsthal organizes a large exhibition in collaboration with the Dutch designers and Canadian curator Thierry-Maxime Loriot.

The exhibition ‘Viktor&Rolf: Fashion Artists 25 Years’ shows Viktor&Rolf’s radical conception of ‘wearable art’ and explores the elements that make their designs unique in the contemporary fashion world.
Throughout their illustrious career, they have carved a contradictory identity that pushes the boundaries between art and fashion, often contrasting romance and rebellion, exuberance and control, classicism and conceptualism. Around sixty works from Viktor&Rolf’s haute couture collections give an insight into their unconventional and conceptual approach, also showing that they have never shied away from criticising the fashion industry (of which they are a part themselves). With regard to form and materials – the interplay of lines, volumes, bows, collars, ruffles etcetera – their creations are stunningly beautiful and technically perfect.

The exhibition is open from May 27 until September 30.
More information here: kunsthal.nl

Picture report: brankopopovicblog

The Third Space - Krisztina de Châtel

The Third Space - Space and Spaciality in the works of Krisztina de Châtel

9 September – 14 October
- At Bureau Europa in Maastricht

Bureau Europa in cooperation with Nederlandse Dansdagen present The Third Space exhibition.
This exh
This exhibition is organized on the occasion of the 75th birthday of the choreographer Krisztina de Châtel, who made more than 70 choreographies and two dance films in the last 35 years. 
Krisztina de Châtel has build up an impressive and influential oeuvre that is partly
determined by the combination of her choreographies and their spatial dimension. Just as the dancers in her choreographies are influenced by the spatial conditions of the environment in which they dance, the visitor will also experience this physically during a visit to The Third Space.

With this exhibition Bureau Europa contributes to the dialogue about the relationship between dance, choreography, scenography and architecture. In addition, this project opens a perspective for the presentation of dance in a museum context. Wouldn't it be great if there was a dance museum?

More information about the exhibition:here

All images by brankopopovicblog.

EA11SV - FW 2018 Campaign

The Croatian based label E.A. 1/1 S.V. came up with an original campaign for their Fall/Winter 2018 campaign. They let the models take selfies of themselves in an Instagram-like setting while wearing pieces from their collection.
This is an interesting example on how contemporary fashion designers are playing with the opportunities that the technology of the internet has provided. In this case, there is a game with the voyeuristic and to a certain extend sexualised character of social media and fashion marketing in which a possible target group is directly involved, and eventually addressed.

E.A. 1/1 S.V. is a Croatian based studio offering products, ideas and research in a field of textile and fashion. The Studio in Zagreb consists of a few people who work with Silvio Vujicic on these experiments.

More information: www.ea11sv.com / instagram @ea11sv

Credits
Models/photographers: Ivan Grgic @ivngrgc, Mate Jonjic @matejonjic, Marko Kasalo @marko_tulu, Filip Matesic @matesic_filip, Matija Milutin @blueseaskybluered, Lucijan Mirdita, Stas Mlinar @autobiografija, Mario Vurdelja @marioprizmic

Marko Feher - YUGOSLAVIA

Marko Feher, a promising fashion designer from Bosnia and Herzegovina who currently studies at Central Saint Martins, presented his new collection 'YUGOSLAVIA / ЈУГОСЛАВИЈА.

In recent years we see a true revival and revaluation for architecture from former Yugoslavia.
At MoMA there is currently a whole exhibition going on about this subject named 'Toward a Concrete Utopia: Architecture in Yugoslavia, 1948–1980'. Fashion and architecture have always had good relationship with each other. In this context, it was to be expected that the futuristic and stunning monuments from Yugoslavia would be a source of inspiration for fashion designers. Such is the case for Marko Feher, who originates from former Yugoslavia.
"The starting point of my inspiration was monument “Tjentiste” in Sutjeska, Bosna I Hercegovina. When I was the age of 7 I saw this monument and was totally impressed, look to me powerful, strong but in the same time remind me on wings and sounds to me freedom."

The editorial is shoot by photographer Edvin Kalić and with the model Iris Bijedić at Tjentište monument. This spomenik (monument) at Tjentište, Bosnia commemorates the fallen fighters of the Battle of the Sutjeska, which took place from May 15th to June 16th, 1943.

Read more about his research on NJAL.

Architecture in Yugoslavia - MoMA

Toward a Concrete Utopia: Architecture in Yugoslavia, 1948–1980
Through January 13, 2019 Moma - The Museum of Modern Art

The Battle of Sutjeska Monumentdesigned by sculptor Miodrag Živković.
This spomenik at Tjentište, Bosnia commemorates the fallen fighters of the Battle of the Sutjeska, which took place from May 15th to June 16th, 1943.

Situated between the capitalist West and the socialist East, Yugoslavia’s architects responded to contradictory demands and influences, developing a postwar architecture both in line with and distinct from the design approaches seen elsewhere in Europe and beyond. The architecture that emerged—from International Style skyscrapers to Brutalist “social condensers”—is a manifestation of the radical diversity, hybridity, and idealism that characterized the Yugoslav state itself. Toward a Concrete Utopia: Architecture in Yugoslavia, 1948–1980 introduces the exceptional work of socialist Yugoslavia’s leading architects to an international audience for the first time, highlighting a significant yet thus-far understudied body of modernist architecture, whose forward-thinking contributions still resonate today.

Uglješa Bogunović, Slobodan Janjić, and Milan Krstić. Avala TV Tower.
1960–65 (destroyed in 1999 and rebuilt in 2010). Mount Avala, near Belgrade, Serbia. Exterior view.
Photo: Valentin Jeck, commissioned by The Museum of Modern Art, 2016.

The exhibition includes more than 400 drawings, models, photographs, and film reels from an array of municipal archives, family-held collections, and museums across the region, and features work by important architects including Bogdan Bogdanović, Juraj Neidhardt, Svetlana Kana Radević, Edvard Ravnikar, Vjenceslav Richter, and Milica Šterić. From the sculptural interior of the White Mosque in rural Bosnia, to the post-earthquake reconstruction of the city of Skopje based on Kenzo Tange’s Metabolist design, to the new town of New Belgrade, with its expressive large-scale housing blocks and civic buildings, the exhibition examines the unique range of forms and modes of production in Yugoslav architecture and its distinct yet multifaceted character.

More info: moma.org

Berislav Serbetic and Vojin Bakic. Monument to the Uprising of the People of Kordun and Banija. 1979–81. Petrova Gora, Croatia. Exterior view. Photo: Valentin Jeck, commissioned by The Museum of Modern Art, 2016

MAFAD Graduation Expo 2018

Nathan Klein

MAFAD (Maastricht Academy of Fine Arts and Design) presented their newest graduates; the class of 2018. With an exhibition staged at the academy MAFAD presents the Design and Fine Arts graduates. This year, the design department in particular showcased an energetic exhibition with multiple future promises. The class of 2018 shows creativity with engaging themes withiout losing sense for commercial potential.
Twelve of them already caught attention at FASHIONCLASH Festival under the name Collective 12. Nathan Klein took away the Chapeau Magazine Award and selection for Lichting 2018 with his personal coming-of-age collection 'The First Time He Kissed a Boy'.
"I was inspired by a teenage experience that left me questioning myself. A loss of innocence during adolescence, the moment just before a teenage crush burst its dam and becomes a fully fledged first love, the is a story about coming-of-age." Kalkidan Hoex created a series of jewelry inspired by her Ethiopian heritage, mixing youth cultures and illustration, she presented a strong and cohesive proposal.
Pia Walter merged contemporary and digital lives together with raw nature by working with recycled tents, army equipement and prints. She is the second finalist for the national best of graduate show the Lichting.  Nienke Creemers showed an engaging protest collection inspired by the history of cotton. 'UNPICKING COTTON' is a protest against the fashion industry and it's rich history of abuse. "While making my collection I tried to make everything as fair and ecological as possible. Soon i discovered this wasn't possible. Even though my intentions were good, I couldn't achieve a 100% fair collection. The knowledge about the industry's history and how we view fashion now, made me think: Did our colonial history influence the way the fashion industry is now?" 
Laura van der Spoel presented a collection of textiles inspired by the attemt to inspire people to stand out from the crowd. Her material experiments were translated into garments and presented on models showing the potential to design for both fashion as interiur market. Sam Schobbe showed ready to wear commercial potential with her print collection inspired by the positive characteristics from ADHD. With this personal inspiration her attempt was to make her ADHD tangible.  
Michelle Zwinkels and Bojanna Aleksić, both experimented with boundaries between jewelry, accessories and fashion design around the body. While Anke Bos merged illustration and textile with her project 'Teleurgang van de millennials'.

Bert Snaterse

At the Fine Arts department Morena Bamberger stood out with an installation inspired by dream images. Her work ‘Reinconnection’ earned her the Gilbert de Bontridderprijs 2018 award. A large space was completely transformed into a cave expressing her own dream world and imagination. The work of Bert Snaterse was presented in various rooms.
Inspired by 'the body and the physical', 'the light on a discarded mattress' and the fact' that the color pink has only been a girls' color since the 1950s', the work of Bert seems quirky and banal, but while taking a closer look we discovere sincere layers of

Take a look at the picture report
all images are by brankopopovicblog

MAFAD Graduation Show 2018

Nienke Creemers

Under the name Collective 12, twelve graduates from Maastricht Academy of Fine Arts and Design joined forces and presented their collections at FASHIONCLASH Festival 2018. Presenting various visions, material experiments and relevant themes their passion came across. Nathan Klein and Pia Walter are selected for the Lichting Show, the best of graduate show in The Netherlands. Nathan Klein was also awarded with Chapeau Magazine Talent Award during the festival.

Graduates: Nathan Klein, Nienke Creemers, Pia Walter, Sam Schobbe, Laura Van der Spoel, Nieke Verkennis, Michelle Zwinkels, Bojanna Aleksic, Helen Hentschke, Jessie Witters, Valéry Fiddelaers, Pauline Hetger

More info: www.facebook.com/COLLECTIVE12 / Instagram @Collective_12

Picture report by brankopopovciblog, Ginger Bloemen

Nulla - dance film by Jean Claude Billmaier

Nulla is the latest film by New York-based motion picture director Jean Claude Billmaier. The film represents a carefully constructed study of movement, with a crescendo of tension and energy being unleashed to an original score by long-standing collaborator, R&B singer and producer Toulouse.

Nulla | Dance Film from Jean Claude Billmaier on Vimeo.

Developed as a response to our work-driven lifestyles, Nulla visually expresses the daily struggle of the everyday person in winding down and resetting one’s energy levels back to zero. Tension is portrayed as having a life of its own; it slowly makes itself known, settles and then returns as a disruptive force seeking to be released.

“Emotions such as anxiety, stress and anger are often portrayed as negative forces trapped within ourselves. With Nulla I wanted to create a place in which all our tensions are released, with the process itself being something ecstatic and gratifying. It’s the release, and finally being able to breathe, that we should be focusing on.” - Jean Claude Billmaier

This level of tension is achieved through Loni Landon’s dance direction and Evan Copeland’s powerful performance. Working within the confined space of a hotel room, Landon translated the director’s vision into frantic shapes and quick bursts of movement. In particular, she highlighted the performer’s physical confinement by focusing on specific body parts, such as the neck, hands and feet. The film was choreographed with no music and shot with a handheld camera, allowing Copeland to spontaneously experiment with movements, textures and rhythm and work on a fast and constant buildup and release of energy.

“Nulla focuses on a theme that many people can relate to. Expressing it meant showing the feeling of confinement using a small space, which made the creative process even more exciting. Finding possibility within limitation is always interesting.” - Loni Landon

Toulouse’s original score complemented the action, crafting an emotionally eerie and surreal soundscape. This film was an opportunity for the musician to compose to dance for the first time. He elaborated on Billmaier’s theme of tension and release by portraying the initial body movements through a tense sonic design, while gradually building momentum with a constant pulsing rhythmic element. He then interpreted the dancer’s final energy release with a series of percussive, soaring beats.

The addition of the over one hundred VFX shots amplifies the ecstatic, yet strenuous process of energy being discharged. By playing with the idea of invisible shards imprisoning us, Billmaier reflects on how our self-imposed restraints only become visible once we acknowledge them and are able to break away from them.

Credits
Director: Jean Claude Billmaier @jcb.haus
Original score by Toulouse @musicbytoulouse
Featuring Evan Copeland  @evanmcopeland
Produced at JCB Haus Producer: Joshua Bennet
Choreographer: Loni Landon @lonifaye
Director of Photography: Sam Cutler-Kreutz @samcutlerkreutz
Gaffer: Josh Herzog @josherzog
Editor: Sascha Taylor Larsen @satisfiedsascha
Visual Effects and Color: Justin Levine @j.r.levine
Sound Design: Bobb Barito @baritobobb 

Recap FASHIONCLASH Festival 2018

The Pink Church

Fashion My Religion!
 
FASHIONCLASH presented with Fashion My Religion! the 10-year anniversary edition of the international and interdisciplinary FASHIONCLASH Festival. During the 15th, 16th and 17th of June 2018 more than 150 promising designers and stage performers from countries such as the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Portugal, Serbia, Finland, Uruguay and many more where given the stage at the festival. The festival program was composed within a 3-day program The Route: an inspiring pilgrimage along 26 locations with expositions, theatre- and dance performances and talks.

Several projects where specially initiated for the festival, for example the God Is A Woman!? project for which ten designers where invited to create an outfit that is based on research on a subject that is related to the theme ‘Fashion My Religion, focussing on the research on social intolerances exist and how fashion can play a role in creating more inclusivity.

The festival opened in the Gashouder on Friday June 15.  Not only was there pie but also the campaign cakes from Das Leben am Haverkamp could be admired from up close. The opening guests could choose from four routes: Museum, Church, City and Sally. Each route consisted of a number of elements from the program such as the Koorkappen exhibition in the Bonnefantenmuseum, dance performance LUX by Sally Dance Company in the Brandweer, Babel collection installation by Kasper Jongejan, Showpieces exhibition in the Bijenkorf, Inspired by Religion exhibition in 't Dinghuis, installation of Amber Jae Slooten in Entre Deux and Day Dream Space installation / performance by Tim Scheffer and Audrey Apers in Centre Ceramique.

Opening tour of The Route

The Pink Church
On Friday, a rather controversial and much-discussed pink church was literally blown up at the historic square the Vrijthof, where a themed program was organized with a number of speakers in collaboration with Waardengedreven. The Pink Church got a lot of attention and while the churches in the Netherlands are getting empty, the pink church was packed with fashionable guests.

Fashion Shows
The Fashion Show program with more than 30 designers and 12 MAFAD graduates took place on Saturday evening, a spectacular evening in a setting designed by Studio AKATAK and Scott Robin Jun. There were many highlights such as Carlijn Veuring, Annaïss Yucra Mancilla, Daria D'Ambrosio, Jacqueline Loekito, SorteMaria, Teun Seuren, Matteo Carlomusto and Zahra Hosseini. During the show program the impressive LUX was presented, the dance performance of Sally Dance Company, tenth edition of the CLASH Project and Noumenon performance by Mami Izumi and Jivika Biervliet.

Beckhomorehena by Zahra Hosseini
Show scenography Studio Akatak & Scott Robin Jun

Awards 
After the shows four Awards were presented. And the winners are:
- FASHIONCLASH Festival Award: Filipe Augusto
- KALTBLUT Magazine Award: HENKJENZ
- CHAPEAU Magazine Talent Award: Nathan Klein
- Vancouver Fashion Week Award: STEVEN VANDERYT and Rita Sá

Nathan Klein

Fashion Talk
On Sunday there was a program in the LAB Building / Forza Fashion House with three performances and The Fashion Dialogue: a CLASH or VALUES, a talk organized in collaboration with MIND FASHION with special speakers Maaike de Haardt, Dai Rees, José Teunissen, Ben Wubs, Adam Peacock and Mariangela Lavanga.

Performances
The tenth edition was one with many clashes with which the FASHIONCLASH platform gave stage to the experiment that goes beyond fashion. The festival presented a series of theme related theater and dance crossovers, including the performance 'HUNTING' by Nora Ramakers and Timo Tembuyser, a co-production with VIA ZUID, ORACLES by Anna Luka da Silva and Erik van de Wijdeven and 'MISSA HOMO SACER Op. 35 Confiteor Deo' by Timo Tembuyser. At the Mosae Forum shopping center, a special project was presented, called Dialoque Between Fashion and Death by Nina Willems, who collaborated with fashion designer Marlou Breuls and director Eva Line de Boer, based on the romantic poem by Giacomo Leopardi. At Lumière Cinema the performance took place 'I Am Sad', a project by Margreet Sweerts that showed the research of the project Festival of Sadness that will take place in the autumn.

LUX - Sally Dansgezelschap Maastricht

One of the festival highlights was LUX, the dance performance of SALLY Dance Company Maastricht. A choreography by Martin Harriague in collaboration with Maastricht fashion designer Mieke Kockelkorn, inspired by the written word in religion. And last but not least, the number of talented students from Academy of the performing Arts Maastricht who presented their performances, including Anthony van Gog, Timo Tembuyser, Anna Luka da Silva and Kimberly Afua Agyarko.

Dialoque Between Fashion and Deathat Mosae Forum

For more information about the festival and participants: fashionclash.nl

Take a look at some highlights
All pictures: brankopopovicblog

Das Leben am Haverkamp