interview with fashion designer henrik vibskov

interview with fashion designer henrik vibskov
portrait by alastair philip wiper

danish creative henrik vibskov transcends the conventional titles of ‘fashion designer’ and ‘artist’ — he is the creator of eccentric universes that accompany each of his wearable collections. with projects bearing names like ‘the spaghetti handjob’, ‘the sticky brick fingers’ and ‘the solar donkey experiments’, vibskov’s oeuvre spans a wild and extraordinary range of music, exhibitions and artistic performances, making each runway show completely unique and undoubtedly captivating. he has produced over 26 mens (and later also women’s) collections since he graduated from central st. martins in 2001, going on to participate in festivals, contests and talks, most recently presenting at the 2014 edition of design indaba.

designboom spoke with vibskov about where he draws influence from, processes and materials he most enjoys working with and how he dreams up those highly imaginative collection names.

‘the spaghetti handjob’ A/W 2014

DB: what originally made you want to study fashion and become a designer?

HV: by accident I ended up in wrong school foundation. the course I really wanted to attend was fully booked. I went to CSM (central saint martins) because of a girl (it almost sounds like a pop song by jarvis cocker). I have actually been more into the music and have played the drums since the age of 10. I played some pretty dark music, and suddenly realized that the fashion and the music was very close connected towards some special codes in social circles.

‘the spaghetti handjob’ A/W 2014

DB: who/what has been the biggest influence on your work to date?

HV: I like when things are multiplied and technical advanced — I also like strange surreal twisted universes where things are a bit upside down. I am influenced by many different things. it would be sad to nail it down to a few big things — it can really be anything from a movie to a walk. I also like when it has humor touch…like a whale in a swimming pool project.

two looks from ‘the spaghetti handjob’ A/W 2014 collection
images by hordur ellert olafsson

DB: overall – what would you say is your strongest skill and how have you honed that skill over the years?

HV: maybe my calmness? the old magazine ‘the face’ once wrote something like, ‘if henrik was more laid back he would have been asleep’ – fun note, right!?

DB: what production techniques and materials have you enjoyed working with the most to realize your work?

HV: changing material is actually the most important for me — through different knit structures to print to woven compositions to….

DB: what processes or materials would you like to explore further in the future?

HV: I would like to explore the woven machines more, to learn new techniques etc., etc.

‘the sticky brick fingers’, 2014
photo by alastair philip wiper

vibskov sent models down the runway for ‘the sticky brick fingers’ show alongside a series of choreographed dancers, performing within a shallow pool. a 150-square-meter basin filled with 4,000 liters of water served as the stage for ten dancers from the norwegian national opera and ballet, splashing their way through a sequence created by alexander ekman.

‘the sticky brick fingers’

DB: what do you consider to be the most interesting developments in the field of fashion right now and why?

HV: I like that fashion has become wider than ‘just’ clothes and with more overlaps to other creative fields. maybe that is not a new thing, but it is a direction I find interesting. in new collaborations the generosity from fashion is used as a way to extend an expression in other creative worlds such as theater, music, ballet, arts etc. in that space between these different worlds funny things appear, and they are inspiring to me.

scenography from ‘the sticky brick fingers’, 2014

DB: does your work reflect your personal fashion taste?

HV: I think it works both ways: my work reflects on my personal fashion taste, and my personal fashion taste reflects on my work. when that is said, I am not sure if my personal fashion taste reflects on what I prefer wearing. I have some few things I use for years until they are worn out and then I try to find something similar.

looks from ‘the sticky brick fingers’ S/S 2015
photos by victor jones

DB: what do you know now that you wish you knew when you were 21?

HV: I am not sure knowing what I know now would be any help to me at 21. of course, I have learned by my mistakes like anyone else, but I think it has also been good for me to make those mistakes. I’ve made a lot…

the solar donkey experiments’ S/S 2010

 
DB: what are you currently fascinated by and how is it feeding into your designs?

HV: these last few weeks I have been very fascinated by horse-racing names. and how smoke can create different shades of transparency. I guess we will see later how and if it will affect design.

the solar donkey experiments’ S/S 2010

DB: how do you decide the names of each collection?

HV: it comes quite late. during the process of each collection we gather words. and at the end it makes sense to use and combine some of them.

looks from ‘the solar donkey experiments’ S/S 2010

DB: what’s the last thing that made you say wow?

HV: I am from the country side of jutland, we rarely say ‘wow’. I guess we are more understated in our vocabulary.

‘the land of the black carrots’ A/W 2007
photo by michael maximillian hermansen

‘the slippery spiral situation’ A/W 2010
photo by alastair philip wiper

looks from the ‘the slippery spiral situation’ A/W 2010 collection

design indaba conference 2014

dubbed ‘the conference on creativity’, the design indaba conference is all about how design, creativity and innovation can positively impact the world. so much more than a ‘how-to’ conference, this is a forum fueled by inspiration that breeds ideas, ingenuity and innovation. the conference is an opportunity to listen to the world’s foremost creatives, entrepreneurs and trendsetters. it’s the not-to-be-missed creative event in africa.