Fashion Interviews

JEREMY SCOTT: POP DESIGNER OR UNDERGROUND SENSATION?

During London Fashion Week, EXIT hung out with the effervescent Jeremy Scott in the Adidas ObyO Pop Up Shop at 6 Newburg Street. We talked about Tokyo versus London, the exposure of the underground, Lady Gaga, and Jeremy’s colourful collection for Adidas. The Autumn/Winter 09 collection is a playful homage to 90s African influences in pop culture, mixed with safari imagery. Photographs of the new collection have galvanized the online community to discuss, buy, or freak out over Jeremy’s unique designs. EXIT investigates why.

You take a lot of fashion risks. Is that intentional or is it the shock of the new? Is it your way of being mind expanding?

Well I definitely think it’s important to always expand one’s mind and to try to do that as a designer, to try to open people’s imagination and make them think differently about something. (When it comes to ObyO trainers) there are wings sprouting from the shoe or three tongues per shoe but at the same time I just made it because I think it’s beautiful. So it’s not just done in a purely provocative sense.

What city right now is taking the most fashion risks?

Well you know Tokyo is on its own planet. The kids there are doing the most elaborate and unexpected combinations. London in general is a much more youthful fashionable city, compared to New York. London has a lot more fun young fashion. But for very extreme looks, Tokyo is still winning that race.

Is it like just in the book Fruits?

Yeah, it’s the new generation of Fruits. Tokyo is amazing compared to New York or anywhere else. I don’t know about London because I don’t spend as much time here, but I know people are definitely a lot more into eccentric looks. You know in New York, if you grew a beard some dude on the street might shout, “Yo what is THAT? What you wearing?” and they have this liberty, they can just tell you about it. But in Tokyo no one looks at you or talks to you about it at all. And so the first trip I went there I just kept pushing it more and more everyday. I thought, I’m going to make you talk to me. I had a racoon tail and I hooked it into the back of my pants so I had this tail swinging around and I couldn’t catch people’s eye for the life of me, cause they just won’t stare. Obviously no one was laughing or sniggering or pointing. It is such a wildly liberating feeling of I can wear whatever I want and do anything I want. And especially if there’s two people there, two boys, two girls, girl and boy, they both decide “oh we’re gonna wear clown shoes and big clown glasses” or something like that and they have their own trend and they just walk around together. They’re in their own world and think “yeah of course everyone should have a bowtie this big…” It’s inspiring it really is. And it’s how everything goes at the same time, how they look at the way American or European culture is and the way they’ve appropriated it makes you look at it in a different way. Not even the exciting aspects of visual culture, it’s things we might think are mundane and boring. They’ve rendered it totally different because of how they’ve curated it. It’s amusing, ‘cause you see it through their eyes. It’s very fascinating.

Your new adidas O by O collection has a lot of 90’s hip hop shapes and African patterns. What was your inspiration behind the collection?

I did think about Africa as my kind of inspiration and ideas.  You see these documentaries on TV and people will be wearing these clothes from Europe, kind of thrift store vintage sports wear but then they mix it with their sarongs and loincloths and beaded things and jewellery that they’d made.  I wanted to take this idea of African sports wear and create my own version, taking elements of the visuals in these documentaries then do it with sportswear fabrics. I developed these hybrid styles, and at the same time I was inspired by early 90s culture like Dwayne Wayne and A Different World.

How did you decide to apply the stingray/ batwing silhouette to sportswear?

I fused eveningwear shapes into sports wear.

What’s a typical day for you?

Well, I wake up look at lots of e-mails from Europe; New York has already been awake for two hours so there’s some New York ones in the mix. I go to my studio and work with my assistants there. It depends on what we’re doing at that time, if we’re doing a costume for Lady Gaga for example then we’re getting all that stuff together, getting ready for a fitting or for the show…I don’t know, it sounds really boring. Actually I’m always putting things together. I work really late and then start again early the next day.

How much sleep do you get? I’ve read that Noam Chomsky and Tom Ford get about four hours sleep a night and I was wondering if there was a prerequisite minimum amount of sleep for success.

There are times that four hours has been regular, probably six on average.

Do you have a favourite Lady Gaga costume?

I love the yellow one in the Paparazzi video. It comes directly from the show. I made it especially for her as a jumpsuit. When it was revealed she went with it so far with the glasses and everything that it became iconic in the video.

Who is someone you’d like to dress?

Dolly Parton. But in a way I kind of want to leave her alone because she’s so great. It’s a Catch 22; like I love you so much but maybe I shouldn’t bother you.

What do you think of underground versus popular culture?

I think they both lend things to each other and nowadays there’s more exposure to the underground than ever before, because of the way information is transferred everyone kind of knows everything. In this way there’s no real room for incubation, for things to be underground as in the past. I’m a pop artist so I’m all about pop culture and being as inclusive as I can be. At the same time, my work is provocative, challenging and out of the ordinary so it’s a new combination.  In a way, it is underground and aboveground. I definitely love niche culture and the history of it from different periods and different times. The underground is important but at the same time I love and have always loved pop culture.

Words: Margo Fortuny, Exit magazine

MARKUS LUPFER / FASHION PARADOXES

As I scurry through Hackney to Markus Lupfer’s studio in East London, the sun toasts my arms. A narrow street presents itself and I make my way to the studio, dodging delivery trucks and midday traffic. Buzzer buzzed, I enter several long corridors and creep through the industrial labyrinth of a building. The sounds of construction disappear. The temperature drops. I wonder what Markus Lupfer will be like. I have only seen images of the voluminous, airy clothes he creates as the designer for Armand Base’s womenswear line.

A young assistant opens the door and offers me a glass of water. The studio is bright and cool and tidy. The radio by the windowsill plays softly in the corner. White walls are covered with photographs of collections. Several bookshelves are filled with large volumes, mostly relating to art, fashion, and photography: Guy Bourdin, the MOCA Skin+Bones exhibition catalogue, and so on. Books of fabric swatches lie on one of the desks. Sitting in the sunshine at an oval glass table is Mr. Lupfer himself. He politely rises and introduces himself in a tranquil voice.

German-born Lupfer graduated from the University of Westminster, whose list of alumni include Vivienne Westwood and Christopher Bailey. In 1998, the year after he graduated, Lupfer started his own label. He went on to collaborate with numerous labels including Mulberry, Cacharel, and Topshop. Rock & roll endorsement and positive press followed as Siouxsie Sioux and Jade Jagger partied in his clothes. In 2006, Lupfer became the Design Director for Armand Basi One.

As I watched the 2008 Spring/Summer catwalk show, I noticed a lot of natural translucent fabrics, loose shapes, kimono-like cuts…could you tell me a little bit about the concept behind the collection?

Well, I wanted to have fun with the collection but also work into shapes. There’s quite an element of Japanese cuts, kimono style as you mentioned, more Eastern/ Japanese details in the cutting techniques and I’m quite inspired and excited by new proportions, new shapes. So yes, that’s what I’ve done with the Spring/Summer collection.

Volume seems to be a recurring theme in Armand Basi womenswear…

It’s about finding different silhouettes, new silhouettes– now there’s almost only opposites, it’s either very body conscious or it’s oversized. I think playing with those elements (of proportion) is really interesting. I don’t know why but there is something new about the oversized and the comfort level, it still feels fresh.

In the most recent collection you used raffia a lot. What’s the strangest material you’ve ever worked with?

That’s one of the strangest materials, because usually with raffia you see it in sun hats and also when you sit at the beach, those big umbrellas have those raffia fringes. So it’s kind of: oh what’s this? material. I really like how the material is almost a bit naff. Somehow that’s quite exciting. Also I’ve done stuff with paper before, which was quite strange.

What do you think are the most important pieces in a wardrobe?

I think it is the black dress. Every girl and woman should have one of those when you go out.

Can you tell me about your creative process and where you get some of your ideas?

Very often I create a little story for myself. It’s starting with a weird idea and then filters down into the collection. But somehow it changes from season to season. Sometimes it’s more like this story about something I saw somewhere or maybe it’s a piece of furniture or just something I love which jumps into my eyes. Then you create the collection around it. Sometimes it’s even a film, like next season it’s based on a film, but not entirely, but it gives me a feel for the collection. It’s really difficult to describe because it changes, it’s more like what feels right at this moment of time, what would I like to do. So it varies a bit.

As a designer, what do you find frustrating?

You know it’s very hard to create every season. It’s very exciting in a way but on the other hand, it’s a lot of pressure. That’s the nature of the business. I think the most frustrating thing is when there is laziness within the team. Some people you work with, they can’t do something so they say “Oh it’s too complicated, it’s this or that” I don’t like that. Everything is possible. They don’t believe that it can be done, but you know it can, they just have to figure out a way. It’s pushing the boundaries, moving it to the next level.

Seeing that your studio is in east London, does this part of the city influence your work in any way?

It does automatically. Your surrounding is very important to where you work. What you see will reflect your work automatically. For example, if I worked from Switzerland or Romania, it would turn out very different, and if you’re in London-and east London especially- I do believe that the area where you design from is quite crucial to your work because it influences your eye and your design, what you feel and what you go through.

What do you like about London?

It’s very free. It’s very creative not only in design or fashion, it’s music, art, advertising, graphics…so many other areas and I think maybe through school or university there’s a freedom of design not seen anywhere else in the world. It can be hard to find that creativity. So I love that. Maybe it’s also to do with how you’re very free to dress however you want, and I think that’s very good.

What’s your favorite kind of music to listen to when you’re working?

Indie music, easy music. I can’t work with hardcore dance music…

Do you have a favorite band?

I love the Kings of Leon, and the Kaiser Chiefs. At the moment, Feist…kind of quiet girls’ bands is what I like recently. And I listen to a lot of radio during work.

How important is lifestyle and philosophy to fashion?

It is. That’s what it’s all about: Lifestyle. High fashion especially, when you buy bags or shoes you want to be part of a certain lifestyle. Your lifestyle is the whole thing about fashion: You show your lifestyle through fashion. The punks did, the Mods did, you can see people’s lifestyle. High fashion is the luxury end of this. You admire a certain lifestyle so that’s why you buy it.

Diane von Furstenberg’s credo was "Feel like a woman. Wear a dress." Warhol said, "Making money is art, and good business is the best art." Do you have a credo?

Not really. One thing I think is when you start something do it to the best of your abilities.

I read in an interview that Jeff Koons has inspired you. To what extent does visual art inform your work?

With his work, it’s the voluminous shapes. The roundness inspires me. It caught my eye. It’s not that every season some artist inspires me.

I noticed a few photography books over there (on his shelf.) Do any of those have a mood that enters your work?

I think photography is cool, it’s quite important to look at those photographer’s images. Very often fashion is about image; you create an image for a brand, that’s what photographers do as well. It’s very inspiring to look through.

What do you think is the most exciting thing about fashion?

It’s the constant change, but it’s the subtleties. Every decade, ‘60’s/ ’70’s/ ‘80’s/ ‘90’s/ millennium, can be described by fashion. Small changes in shapes, in proportions, change the perceptions of fashion. If you look almost every garment is different from another one. There are so many possibilities, endless possibilities. That’s really challenging. Different fabrics create different shapes. Even if you have the same pattern but different fabric, you get something very different. So to imagine that when you design a collection is really challenging, it’s constant. It’s still new. Every season, every time, it’s always different. I think that’s very exciting.

Sometimes you see a collection and it echoes the past, what do you think of that?

Usually you find something that is now and right for this moment. In a way, you need to move fashion forward to another level, but there always will be references, because fashion has been there for thousands of years. There are loads of possibilities but even if you do something it is still a reminder of something else, there are always links. At the end of the day a skirt is a skirt, you only have so many variations and patterns but how often can you change it? That’s why things come back. They’re always different. It’s weird in fashion: it’s limited but it’s unlimited. Maybe you’re limited in shapes-to a certain extent- but there are unlimited possibilities. Automatically anything can be references but you try to do something relevant to the present.

Are there any future creative projects that you have in mind?

Not really. At the moment I’m doing a project with eyelashes. But that’s quite small. But out of fashion? No, it’s always fashion.

It’s your calling. When did you first start getting into fashion?

I think I was about 15. There was a program in Germany; it was about all the new catwalk shows. I just loved it. I think it’s from there where it all started.

Are there any designers from the past that had an influence on you?

Yves Saint Laurent, Sonia Rykiel.

A Parisian slant…

Yes.

Words: Margo Fortuny, Metal

TUXEDO LOOKS, LONG TONGUES, AND BEAST WATCHING: AN INTERVIEW WITH JEREMY SCOTT

There is elegant, unobtrusive building on a tiny street in the Marais. If you walk through the courtyard, open the glass door, and go upstairs Jeremy Scott is sitting on a black sofa. He is wearing a faded Gilbert & George tee shirt, which I admire.

Jeremy Scott grew up in Clinton and Kansas City, Missourri, before journeying to New York City. After graduating from the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, he jetted to Paris, where he caught the eye of Gaultier’s PR rep and Karl Lagerfeld. The French fashion world welcomed young Jeremy and his whimsical style. After a few years of creating outrageous and imaginative pieces, Jeremy Scott started his own company and established himself as a successful fashion designer. Along the way, he won two of France’s Venus de la Mode Awards for future top designer in 1997 and was nominated for Best Young Designer by the Council of Fashion Designers of America in 1999. Bjork, Kanye West, Kylie Minogue, and Madonna are all fans. Jeremy Scott has collaborated with numerous companies, including Adidas, with whom he has worked with since 2003. His latest creative projects revolve around the new collection for Originals by Originals (ObyO.) Most of the range focuses on three themes: Africa, Safari, and TV colour blocks. These days Jeremy lives in L.A. though he’s in Paris this afternoon for Fashion Week.

Do you spend more time in Paris or L.A. these days?

I live in L.A. I’m here for the shows and events, the same for New York, but my daily life is in L.A.

Do you have an all-time style icon?

There are so many great ones that it’s hard to single out somebody I absolutely love. Madonna’s done really well for herself over the years. If you pick her apart she’s worn so many interesting things. She’s a good one, and sometimes some of the bad stuff is good. She might win. Time. Context.

For your collaboration with Adidas, what was the inspiration behind the Spring/Summer 09 Collection?

For the S/S 09 Collection, I was really thinking about all my friends…what they’d want to wear, what I’d want to wear. I tried to embody the music they’re making-the music we listen to- a lot of them are performers: MIA, Kanye West, Madonna, different people, and the demand they have for their job, to look good, to perform, to feel comfortable when you’re on stage, (wearing) something exciting. I feel like that carries over to people’s real life. They like to have stuff that looks cool or interesting but not something that’s cumbersome to wear. That was the departure point, and underlying in my collection for Adidas: sportwear/ activewear, something that’s going to be present with the desire to do something exciting: putting sequins into sportswear, tuxedo looks, or even just prints and ideas and mixing it up.

Is that L.A. influenced at all? The whole need to be comfortable and exciting because as a city, Los Angeles is really into the comfort factor…

Sure, in one way, but I feel New York is more of a sneakerhead place…but no, it’s a good question, how much L.A. influences me now that I live there, and I ultimately get in a car and I don’t have to walk very far, and it’s a different kind of thing. In one way I feel like it’s because of that, people don’t dress up as much in L.A. They do it more for events or nighttime, whereas in New York you’re out on the street. You have to show who you are at all times. Same thing with Paris, London, or Tokyo in a way, these other metropolitan areas where people are out there, so you’re expressing ‘This is who I AM.’ I fall more into that category with what I design than an L.A. style because, as you know, it can be very subdued there…

Do you have a favourite item in the Spring/Summer collection?

I really love the tuxedo ruffle jacket and the tuxedo fleece jacket. I always love eveningwear. So for me, having hybrids of it were super exciting, the ultimate luxury of having soft and easy, and at the same time glamourous.

What’s the ideal occasion to wear your Adidas designs to?

I think that something you can do anytime, that’s what’s great about the high and low element of it. It is sportswear/ relaxed/ fleece, but at the same time the tuxedo fleece jacket looks just like a jacket with tails from a distance, kind of super elegant and fancy.

What’s the influence behind your extremely long-tongued sneakers?

There are those soccer shoes that have the tongue so I just took that concept and went much further with it. I thought of taking the shoe and making new forms and shapes with it, and trying to push it to new boundaries.

Are the JS Wings sneakers connected to the mythological figure Hermes?

Yeah, definitely. I’ve used wings in my work for a long time. I’ve always felt they were very optimistic, uplifting symbol. When you get towards the foot it definitely makes you think of that. I love the idea of mythology in the modern context of a basketball shoe.

Where did get the ideas for the animal theme in the Fall/Winter collection?

I was thinking about Egyptian inscriptions on walls, the pyramids, and then in the cave man time all these old pelts. My idea was how to modernize the wearing of pelts and have that kind of king of Africa, glamourous kind of feeling. It’s also something very wearable, very comfortable.

I’ve seen a few people in Hackney wearing the animal hoodies…

Awww, I love that it’s out on the street. I’m thrilled you’ve seen people wear it. It makes me so happy. I’m glad people are out there living it, loving it, making it their own. It means people identified with it, they’ve used their hard earned money to buy it, it’s something that’s important to them. They’re identifying themselves to others like that. There’s nothing that makes me happier. Of course, I love seeing performers wearing my clothes and perform, especially people I love. It’s a whole other thing when you think about entering someone’s daily lives. That’s the ultimate goal of it: to spice up daily life with some exciting clothes.

Words: Margo Fortuny, Exit Magazine