ARNHEM FASHION BIENNALE ENCHANTS

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The city centre of Arnhem has transformed: nine pavilions have been erected at 5 meters high along the Eusebius Church, creating a surreal sight resembling the look of Asian pole villages. Creations of the world’s most renowned or rather relevant designers have found their homes towering over the market place, close to the public, yet elevated to the level they deserve. Others found their haven in the church itself. Being right in the city centre, the third Arnhem Mode Biennale is the most visible version of all. Every two years the month-long treat for fashion lovers presents the state of affairs in fashion design at an international level. Artistic director Piet Paris and his team excelled for the edition themed ‘Shape’…

Whether a designer is avant-gardist or traditional, he always has to deal with the shape or form of the human body, he needs to consider the front, the side or the back of the design. Behind the logo’s or campaigns, shape is always there, maybe it’s the only stable factor in fashion design; Vision, material, concept and construction are the elements needed to achieve form . This consideration of three-dimensionality in fashion design is the red thread of the Biennale. During the biennale dozens of fashion designers demonstrate that there is more than one way of attaining exceptional forms.

A yellow carpet leads us to the first pavilions, is this Piet Paris’ yellow brick road that will guide us through the magical world of fashion? The presentation immediately catches one’s attention: no static mannequins but life-like models wear the designs, their silicone faces have been modeled to resemble existing models… they bring the clothes to live. Whether it’s the geometric silhouettes of Jil Sander, Kristopher Kane or Balenciaga, the knitwear of Rodarte, the wind dress by Hussein Chalayan or the Christmassy party outfit by Maison Martin Margiela: Piet Paris reinforces them by using exciting and innovative ways of presentation. It wasn’t easy for the organization to convince Comme des Garçons’ Rei Kawakubo, but she must love the heavily patterned pavilion that showcases her S/S 2009 soccer-inspired collection. Visitors are guided to the church after the innovative hologram presentation of a Viktor & Rolf S/S 2009 dress, which surprisingly uses a pretty common Dutch TV presenter as a model instead of Shalom Harlow, a quirky move or a new pet-project? The decision is unknown, but it’s distracting…

'A fashion fairytale has landed between the church’s gothic arches'

The monumental Eusebius Church oozes fashion, it’s here where the presentation becomes more intimate and warm, fifteen wooden houses have found their way in the church and house individual designers; big ones for the bigger names such as Rick Owens or Boudicca, smaller ones for upcoming talents such as Iris van Herpen or Andrea Maack. The glass house doesn’t grow vegetables, the fashion crowd has never been very keen on food, it’s home to an amazing selection of greenery inspired hats by the legendary Stephen Jones... A lifelike mannequin sleeps quietly in a room designed by Lanvin Homme… José Castro’s inflated body bags protect the precious clothes inside… a fashion fairytale has landed between the church’s gothic arches, a magical village with its own fountain… and we didn’t even have to click our ruby red Jan Janssen slippers three times to end up here!

Klavers & Van Engelen, winners of the 2007 Dutch Fashion Awards, made a stunning installation that plays with lights, colours and transparency ‘We decided to show our designs from another perspective, to have the light come from inside out; the lights reinforce the shape. When we created the display we noticed that a lot of our designs didn’t work out, it quickly became too chaotic or too boring. We searched and researched, which in the end paid off’. It’s clear all designers embarked on a similar journey, the Arnhem Biennale selected fashion’s finest and they were willing to show their best as well… it’s no wonder a real princess opened this mythical exhibition; Her Royal Highness Princess Máxima of the Netherlands opened the biennale, naturally dressed in Dutch design: Jan Taminiau… Next to the exhibition SHAPE, the Biennale presents a whirlwind of other exhibitions, fashion shows, lectures, its own magazine and so much more.

For full program details please visit:
WWW.ARNHEMMODEBIENNALE2009.COM

BY EDITOR-IN-CHIEF JOOST VAN GORSEL / PHOTOGRAPHY ICONIQUE & ERNST MORITZ