Ann Demeulemeester
Ann Demeulemeester was born in 1959 in Kortrijk,
Belgium.
Soon after graduating from the Antwerp Royal Academy of Fine Arts fashion
department in 1981, Ann was the first designer to win the ‘Gouden
Spoel’ contest (1983). In 1985 she founded her own company and label
together with her husband and business partner photographer Patrick Robyn.
Only one year later she went to London with 5 other Antwerp Academy graduates.
This resulted in press attention which increased to the extent that in
1991 Ann decided that the time had come to put herself on the Paris’
fashion map. From then on, she has produced a brand new women's wear collection
twice a year. For the summer of 1996 she launched her first men’s
wear collection, her starting point being the desire to create a complete
male wardrobe.
Ann’s clothes are sold in numerous shops across the world in leading
boutiques such as Colette in Paris and Barney’s in New York. In
1999 she opened her own flagship store near the Royal Museum of Fine Arts
in Antwerp. For this museum she designed a round bench, her second furniture
design project. This project swiftly followed her receiving the Best Design
Award from the Flemish Community for a white table covered with painter’s
canvas. This table is for intensive use and the canvas surface can always
be revitalized with a fresh coat of paint. The ‘Table Blanche’
represents Ann Demeulemeester 's "simple yet sofisticated" approach.
style
Ann has always stayed true to her avant-garde,
independent style which gradually consolidated her name as one of the
leading contemporary Belgian, if not, European designers.
Her silhouettes are timeless. Her lines are visually simple, concealing
complex masterful cuts. Her challenge is to explore a piece of clothing
in depth, in all its possibilities. Often jackets can be closed in 3 different
ways, skirts can be worn backwards and one can play with the volume of
a blouse or with the ruffles of a t-shirt. When designing, Ann often starts
working around the idea of a single movement. This movement is recognizable
in all of her clothes. It seems as if they are constantly in motion, even
when the person who’s wearing the clothes is standing still.
The general impression of the collection is always poetically understated,
but at the same time there is always an element of danger that flashes
through. Fluid silk dresses are combined with army boots or barb wire
accessories. The clothes are serious, but never severe, strong yet sensual
and elegant. Demeulemeester’s work has been daubed ‘poetic
rock’n roll à la manière de Patti Smith’.
Muse
From the outset Ann’s source of inspiration,
her muse, is punk icon Patti Smith. Sometimes it seems as if the clothes
are purloined right from Smith’s closet, sometimes Patti’s
poetry or lyrics are printed on t-shirts and accessories. Once Ann even
went further. She did not only use the singer’s music for the show’s
soundtrack, she also invited her to read a poem during the show. Patti
accepted the invitation and wrote a poem especially for the occasion.
Special fabric and design rather than colour
and ornament
Ann is restrained with colour. Black and white are recurring elements
in her collections. Monochrome is often favoured to reveal the essence
of form. When working with colours like silver in the spring 2003 collection
or brown in the fall 2002 collection, she experiments until the fabrics
absorb the pigment, become truly monochrome and saturated.
Demeulemeester approaches form in terms of design-not-decoration, producing
a play of restraint and pure lines, devoid of glitter and glamour. In
her vision, clothes should not be a fashion statement which overshadows
the personality. Or as she puts it herself: “ I want to meet the
man or the woman, not the designer who’s dressing them.”
A gift to an anonymous person
Fundamentally, this is 'good tailoring speak' and Ann enjoys making clothes
which are valued by their owners. She sees a collection as ‘a gift
to an anonymous person’. Of course, always motivating when this
is met by appreciation: “Sometimes I really wonder why I’m
doing this. But then a while ago somebody said to me: ‘the day that
the brand Ann Demeulemeester stops existing, we’ll really lose something!’
Then all of a sudden I remembered."