Dear Shaded Viewers,
Everybody knows that Bruno Pieters was the winner of this year’s Swiss Textile Award – EUROS l00,000 . “The response has been amazing, the week after the show the phone never stopped ringing. Now, I have to concentrate on my next men’s collection which I’m launching in January. The award and the attention that goes with it is great but now I have to focus on what’s ahead.”
Bruno nearly did not enter the competition because he thought that there was no chance that another Belgian would walk away with the EURO l00,000 check. The last three winners include Raf Simons, Haider Ackermann and Christian Wijnants. Actually, no one walks away with a check, the money is invested into their business in accordance with their needs.
The above image was taken when I surprised Bruno by arriving one hour too early for his presentation this season, below are some collection images.
The images above are from his current collection
Bruno graduated from the Royal Academy in l999 and did his first internship with Martin Margiela, later he worked with Christian Lacroix. His first couture collection consisted of one silhouette. I’ve seen every collection that Bruno has created and wanted to know how his approach to fashion has changed over the years.
‘under construction’ collection SS2004
“I started in 2001 with a couture collection. The show was a procession of suits, all very constructed. I still love that collection. The press either loved it or hated it, some thought that it was too “Dutch” looking even thought the only typically Belgian aspect of my work was that what I do is nevery funny or ironic and to me, Dutch fashion is that.”
The three images above are from Bruno’s first couture collection and they are as valid now in 2006 as they were 5 years ago. It brings back a very pleasant memory.
Below are some images from a/w 04
“In March 2002 I launched my ready to wear collection, i wanted it to be more casual, more rock and roll but still constructed. As the seasons went on my collections became more feminine and couture and more and more constructed. It is what I love to do and what the buyers want from me, construction. It’s good to know that people understand my work today.”
Below are images from a/w 06
I favor installations and I wanted to know what Bruno thought about catwalk vs. installation. “We sold twice as much this October without doing a show. For the first time we are selling in Italy and NYC. Fashion shows never made my business grow. What you need is a good collection. Shows are just fun and great for publicity.”
In January Bruno will launch his men’s collection then a new accessory collection in March. He will continue his work at Delvaux in Brussels and has also taken on designing a jeans collection for a Brussels based company, he will replace A F Vandevorst. In addition to that starting in January he will be a guest teacher at the Royal Academy in Antwerp and the big news is that in April he will be going to NYC possibly for a very ambitious project where he would be the creative director. More on that in the Spring. “I love New York, I want to move there. I am not afraid of what I’ll face but I am afraid that I will want to stay.”
Later,
Diane
