The Swedish School of Textiles: Upcycling and unconventionality take centre stage
This review is brought to you in collaboration with Bolou Fine Jewellery.
READ THE ORIGINAL VERSION IN DANISH HERE.
The Swedish School of Textiles, Thursday, August 8, 2024 at 1 PM, The plant (Tårnet)
When you hear the name, The Swedish School of Textiles, it’s rather amusing to find that such a large portion of the students’ final collections featured everything but textiles. Balloons, wire, scissors, sewing machine bobbins, wires, tent poles, needles, clips, false nails, hairpins, a couple of MacBooks—the list goes on. What’s also quite amusing is how you can often tell the students have worked side by side, soaking up the same influences as they crafted their collections.
The two most obvious common threads were the use of unconventional materials and upcycled clothing. The latter, I’d argue, was the most successful from a fashion perspective, which is, after all, what one might expect during a fashion week. While I appreciated the wit and artistry of the many non-textile creations—particularly Abbas Mandegar’s work, which was thoroughly considered, beautifully executed, and made for stunning showpieces—other pieces strayed so far from the body that they resembled art installations more than clothing. A case in point was Albin Söderberg’s look, featuring MacBooks displaying shirt details worn by a model who otherwise donned only leggings. A clever concept, but rather tricky to translate into real life.
Liesel De Ridder was one of the students who committed herself to the use and upcycling of second-hand clothing. She employed a laser cutter and knitting techniques, which worked especially well on a shirtdress where numerous shirts were knitted together to form a skirt.
Luiza Bacher’s collection, ‘In the Kingdom of the Mall,’ was drenched in objects you might find in abundance at any shopping centre—like hair clips and false nails. The hair clips acted almost like large, silver sequins on a grey hoodie and thigh-skimming shorts set, with oversized shoulder pads giving it an almost armoured appearance. Meanwhile, on a pink dress, hundreds of extremely long, false nails created an almost feathered surface, adding a touch of glitz, glam, and humour that would hold its own on the steps of the Met Gala.
It’s clear that the Swedish School of Textiles offers plenty of room for experimentation, with a focus firmly on the process rather than the product. This ethos allows for looks that veer far from the fashions you might find on the high street. Some of the experiments that particularly stood out included Hugo Ehrets’ work, where hand-folded pleats took centre stage. In his collection, ‘Paperfolds,’ Ehrets explored the possibilities of pleats in a textile knitted from paper yarn. These hand-folded pleats were then draped, gathered, and twisted into delicate patterns that resulted in something truly beautiful. It may not be ready for the shop floor just yet, but it’s an exciting exploration of textile potential.
Graduate shows are always a guarantee of new techniques, experimentation, and a bit of fun, and the Swedish School of Textiles’ Class of 2024 was no exception.
This review has been translated using ChatGPT.
See a selection of the show looks below and see the entire collection here.
