From a moonwalking illustrator to a poetic screen printer, fashion houses are looking to artists and craftspeople across the world for cult design collaborations.
Date: 14 January 2024
The Screen Printer: Doha, Qatar
The work of Qatari artist Bouthayna Al Muftah uses screen printing to translate poetry and storytelling into “wearable conversations.” It was her approach to exploring heritage that resonated with Dior creative director Maria Grazia Chiuri, leading to the reimagining of the Lady Dior bag. Transparent petals of script inspired by Arabic poems, songs, and stories are layered together, mirroring the way cultural identity is created through myriad conversations, histories, and memories – the “stories that bind us together as a collective,” according to Al Muftah.
Website: bouthaynaalmuftah.com
The Ceramist: Gify, Japan
Jonathan Anderson, creative director at Loewe, was already a big fan of Takuro Kuwata before they worked together. After the Japanese artist received a special mention at the 2018 Loewe Foundation Craft Prize, Anderson commissioned him to create porcelain jewellery, bag charms, and breastplate detailing for the AW20 collection, all in his signature molten bubble-gum style. “It was all about exploring clothing as jewellery,” says Anderson. Kuwata was recently featured in the Hayward Gallery’s Strange Clay exhibition in London, where his fluorescent monoliths were created through ishihaze, a Japanese technique of puncturing and distorting clay in the kiln.
Website: takurokuwata.com
The Illustrator: Amsterdam, The Netherlands
“Our lives first crossed in the streets of Jordaan,” says Steven Vrendenbarg, cofounder of swimwear line Mr Marvis, of Bruin Parry. “Bruin would dance like Michael Jackson outside our office windows, and we couldn’t resist smiling every time he passed by.” After Vrendenbarg discovered that Parry was an artist as well as a dancer, a collaboration was born in the form of a brightly patterned capsule collection of swimwear. It cemented Parry as a rising star of the Dutch art scene – challenging his role as an outsider artist, one “Thriller” flash mob at a time.
Website: bruinparry.nl
The Sculptor: Kwazulu-Natal, South Africa
In 2014, ceramic artist Thulani Mntungwa was struggling to find work but, after encouragement from his brother, approached pioneering South African design collective Ardmore Studio, which supports over 70 Zulu, Zimbabwean, and Sotho artisans. Two years later, his striking ceramic sculptures of African wildlife were displayed in galleries across the country, catching the eye of Hermès artistic director Pierre-Alexis Dumas. The resulting partnership has led to three collections inspired by Mntungwa’s work, the latest being Flowers of South Africa, featuring the motif of a protea flower, a symbol of the country’s strength.
Website: ardmore-design.com
The Rug-Weavers: Kerala, India
The Met Gala’s carpet design provided a clear indication of the annual party’s theme. This year, a cream carpet with a serpentine line of red and blue swirls nodded to the event’s title, Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty. The carpet was created by husband-and-wife team Sivan Santhosh and Nimisha Srinivas of Neytt studio in Alleppey. “We create rugs that convey a message through design,” says Santhosh, who counts Ralph Lauren among their clients. The Met commissioned a bespoke rug crafted from sisal, a durable fibre that’s a signature for the duo.
Website: neytt.com
The Glass-Blowers: New York, USA
Film-maker, actor, and now glass-blower Breanna Box launched Home in Heven in 2020 with her partner, model Peter Dupont, creating an array of colourful, cool-kitsch products. Their breakthrough moment arrived with a message from Sébastien Meyer, cofounder of Parisian brand Coperni, leading to the creation of the devil-horned Swipe bag, which rapidly became an Instagram sensation. “The timing was divine; it’s a very traditional craft. The trick is to figure out how to be playful,” says Dupont.
Website: seeyouinheven.com
