For the primary time within the U.S., Viktor & Rolf’s work would be the focus of a museum exhibition.
“Viktor & Rolf. Trend Statements” will debut on the Excessive Museum of Artwork in Atlanta this fall, following its inaugural run on the Kuntshalle Munich final 12 months in Germany. There will probably be upward of 100 examples of their daring designs, showcasing the Dutch vogue artists’ dexterity in creating haute couture that challenges what constitutes artwork. For 30-plus years, they’ve been creating avant-garde and thought-provoking work.
As was the case with the present in Germany, they’re working with the curator Thierry-Maxime Loriot, who has arrange 9 chapters — “Trend Artists,” “Russian Dolls,” “Trend Statements,” “The Dolls,” “Zen Backyard,” “Performing Trend,” “Viktor & Rolf on Stage” and “Upcycling Couture.” A ninth chapter that can function commissioned work and has but to be revealed will probably be introduced within the coming months. The exhibition will debut on Oct. 10.
To provide guests additional perception into their inventive course of past the clothes that will probably be displayed from greater than 30 of their collections, there will even be a few of their “works-in-progress dolls.” Impressed by vintage porcelain dolls, these figures will probably be wearing miniature variations of their handmade designs. Animated projections will even be splashed within the galleries, because of the particular results envisioned by the studio Rodeo FX, which has pitched in for such collection as “Stranger Issues,” and “Sport of Thrones,” in addition to the movie “Blade Runner 2049.”
Imaginative, humorous and extremely technical, Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren began their luxurious home in 1993. Whereas they’ve participated in quite a few exhibitions on the Metropolitan Museum of Artwork, the Kyoto Couture Institute, the Musée de la Mode et du Textile and different museums, this would be the first to solely highlight Viktor & Rolf Stateside. Early on of their profession, the design duo labored with classic materials that have been utilized by Cristóbal Balenciaga and Yves Saint Laurent, and later they integrated outsized bows, ruffles, embroideries and surprising silhouettes into their collections. Their spring 2019 high fashion assortment, “Trend Statements,” highlighted social media-friendly catch phrases that have been mixed with elaborately formed clothes manufactured from layers of tulle.
Loriot mentioned, “Individuals ask me the identical query on a regular basis, ’Why have vogue in a museum?’ Viktor & Rolf are precisely the reply to this query. While you see the work, it’s not about traits, the flavour of the work or the flavour of the season. It’s actually necessary for younger generations to know what’s being created. We dwell in a second that can be a recognition contest. It’s about what number of likes and followers you could have, and who will probably be your model ambassadors. Viktor & Rolf don’t take into consideration creating this manner.”
Horsting mentioned the designers, who met at the ArtEZ Institute of the Arts in Arnhem, the Netherlands, mentioned he hopes that individuals will probably be “impressed, energized, that they’ll suppose, be moved, and in addition that they might have a little bit of a distinct view in regards to the vogue and the garments than maybe the concepts that they’ve, after they are available [to the museum.] That might be good to widen folks’s view of the horizon,” he mentioned.
Emphasizing the significance of how vogue can elicit an emotional response, Horsting mentioned that when he appears to be like at artwork, nice design or a terrific ebook, he desires ”to be moved and touched. I hope that we will provide that to the viewers.”
“Late Stage Capitalism Waltz Haute Couture,” spring/summer season 2023, Viktor & Rolf. Modeled by Eva Bus. Photographed by Marijke Aerden.
Marijke Aerden/Courtesy of Viktor and Rolf
Whereas the exhibition is about Viktor & Rolf’s model and its work, the designer famous that’s not a brand-sponsored present. “I’m proud to have been invited by the Excessive Museum to point out an outline of what we’ve executed. I prefer to suppose that it’s on inventive benefit.”
He additionally mentioned that he’s “actually proud” of not simply the entire work that he and Snoeren have executed, however how Loriot has put the exhibition collectively. “It’s actually lovely and he actually made it right into a energetic exhibition. It’s not only a continuation of this 12 months we did this, the following 12 months we did that,” Horsting mentioned. “I’m trying ahead to see this edit of every little thing that we’ve executed. Clearly, I’ve lived all of those collections and all of those reveals. Clearly, not every little thing is nice. However whenever you see a present like this. The stuff that was not-so-great is edited out. It’s good to see the highlights.”
Every bit additionally serves up loads of reminiscences. “A lot work, a lot time has handed,” Horsting mentioned. “Hey, we’re nonetheless right here.”
Horsting mentioned that it’s thrilling to be having a present Stateside for the primary time, having had a number of different reveals in Europe — Paris, London, Munich and the Netherlands, in addition to in Australia. Exhibiting on the Excessive Museum will even permit the designers to handle a brand new viewers for his or her vogue, regardless that their fragrances are well-known within the U.S.
“We love to point out in galleries for a number of causes. We’re full management freaks. With the catwalk present, there’s all the time the ingredient of shock. You can not management every little thing. There generally is a great power with the catwalk present, however it’s just for a really brief period of time and for a really restricted viewers,” Horsting mentioned. “With the museum present, there’s a way of management, the chance to handle the bigger viewers and to deal with the craftsmanship. That’s additionally an important ingredient that generally will get missed at a present. There’s merely not the time to understand the entire finer particulars and the technical elements of our work.”
Horsting added, “Maybe we’re totally different from different designers, as a result of we all the time appear to wish to inform a narrative or create one thing that tells a bit of greater than solely fashion.”
The exhibition was first staged final 12 months at Munich’s Kuntshalle museum, the place Loriot has additionally held ones for Jean Paul Gaultier, Thierry Mugler and Peter Lindbergh — all of which have been museum-initiated versus model tasks. “It’s essential for an inventive venture to be in regards to the artist,” he mentioned.
From his perspective it is vital these days to make the excellence between a museum exhibition and a brand-sponsored one. “There are lots of these brand-sponsored exhibitions, that are extra like promoting or storytelling from within the model,” he mentioned.
Making the purpose that having limitless budgets doesn’t imply that an exhibition will look good, the curator mentioned, “It’s like a portray. It doesn’t must have gold or diamonds to have worth. It’s actually the content material that wins…I’m in awe of the entire concepts that they give you. It’s not nearly having the concepts, but in addition [being capable of] translating them into garments. With them, it’s a good suggestion well-executed each season.”
There will probably be almost 10 appears to be like that haven’t been offered earlier than from new and previous collections, in addition to artworks from Cindy Sherman and Andreas Gursky amongst others. Earlier than assembly the designers, Loriot mentioned that he thought they could be the Gilbert & George of vogue — very critical. “However they’ve a very tongue-in-cheek humorousness, which I actually respect. They’re additionally extremely open to new concepts and are very curious to produce other folks’s opinions, which is sort of uncommon within the business. I believe a lot of the true artists all the time query themselves.
“I actually imagine that whenever you’re a inventive and an artist, you might be impressed by so many alternative issues. Artists are a bit like sponges. They take in data and totally different beauties. Something can turn into inspirational,” Loriot mentioned.