SECURED SPEED. This season, PUMA by Hussein Chalayan explores the velocity of sport, kites, and sailing, and how their industrial details and dynamics can transform traditional tailoring. Apparel fuses classic shapes with the modernity of mesh, nylon, and Tyvek. Footwear is distinct and methodical, capturing the interplay of sport, motion, and speed through lightweight materials and simple yet supportive constructions. The final touch is the use of Kabuki color, inspired by the theatrics and movement of Japanese dance. Mandarin reds, grey violets, and rusts take the collection to a distinct height, designed for summer months and reflecting on the rapidity of everyday life.
In an in interview with Vevo, Lady Gaga wears a Chalayan Black Line New Frame Dress from the SS12 collection as she discusses her new video Marry The Night.
This season Chalayan collaborated with The Creators Project and VICE on the SS12 Show in Paris. Check out the documentary The Creators Project shot on the making of the show.
“It’s never a rebellion, never aggressive. It’s never disturbing nevertheless he questions things. I feel very close to his work and actually he was first drawn to architecture. I started through my studies in furniture design and it’s through design and dance that I got into fashion. We can feel in his work this first interest for architecture. His work is very constructed and rigorous. The influence of other forms of creativity is very present. I really like the project After Words, the chairs and table that transform into garments and disappear. It’s wearable furniture. Everything works perfectly. The scenography is also very elegant. It’s a real / complete show. I really like the idea of movement in clothes, just like furniture is supposed to move or to be moved. The idea is to continue the fluidity of movement when the garment / furniture is on the model. It’s certainly what inspires me to do garments. It is this necessity of movement, of fluidity, of transformation. I’m convinced that this necessity of transformation is very linked up with design. I’m convinced that this need to transform is linked with design. Hussein Chalayan’s models express something neutral. Sometimes he even hides their identity by covering their head, which cancels the notion of individuality. It’s not a classical approach He’s not just a stylist that makes collections one after the other. He goes further, with a highly conceptual approach that translates into collections with a truly artistic depth. He is always at the boundaries of design, fashion and architecture with social, cultural, historical or political references. It’s what gives life to creations that go further than a simple garment. And these dresses that curl up as if by magic! The fabric moves with fluidity. It doesn’t feel mechanical. I just hope it translates eventually to the street and that it can have an existence beyond a museum piece. Hussein Chalayan is an innovator and a risk-taker. He is a precursor who goes beyond a collection’s commercial potential and gives us a look into a possible future.”
Lady Gaga has announced that she will be releasing five ‘Fashion Videos’ for her single ‘Yoü and I’ The first, which has just been released is a beautiful black and white video directed by dutch photographers Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin and features Lady Gaga wearing exclusively a custom made Chalayan dress.
Closing on the 29th August, there are only a few days left to go and see Hussein Chalayan’s ‘Kaikoku’ film which is being shown in a unique 360˚ interactive installation at Ron Arad’s Curtain Call at the Roundhouse.
