RUNWAY SHOW REVIEW: IRIS VAN HERPEN SPRING 2021 COUTURE

By Maral Gankhuyag Fashion Business Management, ‘23

When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe.

Conservationist John Muir’s profound quote serves as a thesis to IrisW Van Herpen’s Spring 2021 couture collection. This idea of interconnectedness is the root out of which Van Herpen’s collection grows, a poignant statement resonating with the many who have endured the isolation that accompanied the COVID-19 pandemic.

Van Herpen’s collection is pregnant with fungal motifs, from the conspicuous ruffling inspired by the chanterelle mushroom to a more covert manipulation of fabric meant to mimic the gilling on a mushroom’s underside. These are largely inspired by the works of Merlin Sheldrake, scientist and author of “Entangled Life”, a book that explains how fungi sustain life on Earth. Sheldrake unfolds the discovery of the mycorrhizal networks, also known as the “wood wide web”, an underground network made up of fungi that allows intercommunication between trees.

Van Herpen was moved by the symbiosis shared between the mycorrhizal fungi and the trees. “It’s really beautiful to look at nature and how nature connects in a very similar way to how we communicate,” Van Herpen tells Vogue. She experimented with the idea of interlacing her collection with the same mutualism, except this time, exploring the confluence of science and fashion, nature, and technology. The symbolism flows through the collection, manifesting in 3D printed laces inspired by fungal growth patterns or a crown made of kinetic filaments “designed to highlight the metamorphosis in the fungi queendom.”

Van Herpen’s devotion to nature also extends beyond the runway. Van Herpen has passionately expressed her concern for the fashion industry’s contribution to pollution and has found a unique way to combat her own ecological footprint. Van Herpen brings fashion and science closer together through her partnership with Parley for the Oceans who synthesized fabric for Van Herpen’s collection made up entirely of marine debris.

Parley for the Oceans’ mission statement reads “the power for change lies in the hands of the consumer – given we all have a choice.” In their alliance with Iris Van Herpen, the company hopes to reach consumers through fashion and other creative industries in order to shape the consumer mindset. Parley for the Oceans believes these industries should utilize their influence and power to develop alternative business models and ecologically sensible products to give buyers options to lead a more sustainable lifestyle.

Their trademarked Ocean Plastic fabric comes to life in Van Herpen’s Holobiont dress, the sixth dress featured in her Spring 2021 collection. For the dress, the designer first printed the fabric before “laser-cutting it parametrically into fine triangle tessellations” placed meticulously on a sheer mesh fabric that seems to melt into the model’s skin. The fabric sings on the runway and it is hardly perceptible that the fabric is made entirely from plastic sourced from the estimated eight million tons of waste that end up in the oceans every year. Speaking to Vogue about this new use of Ocean Plastic®, Van Herpen explained that “[couture] clients expect the highest quality out there, so you don’t want to go sustainable if you lower the quality. We are now at a moment where the quality [between organic silk and a recycled polyester] is completely equal. It’s really a matter of decision, it’s not a matter of choosing quality. There’s not a lot of reason not to use sustainable materials anymore, other than changing your mindset.”

Van Herpen’s Spring 2021 Spring Couture show perfectly encapsulates the ethos of the Iris Van Herpen house. Each dress eloquently conflates the ideas of nature and technology hidden within every fold, crease and drape in each garment. Every element in the show balances on top of one another, creating a web between Van Herpen, her inspirations, and the consumer. Mother Nature is Van Herpen’s ultimate muse and with this collection, Van Herpen continues to ground herself as one of the true poets of nature.