Helmut Lang As Seen By Jeremy Deller

What’s your background - when did P.L.N enter your life?

It started back when I was in high school. I was kind of sick and tired of these rules of dressing that seemed to be dominating the hallways of the high school: Ralph Lauren polo shirts and caps with the logos and all. It felt as if you had to dress and look a certain way to be accepted, which just made me want to do something that was completely different. I wasn’t the only one who felt that way, and after talking to my best friend about it I was like “fuck it”, I’ll make some caps that are the complete opposite of this polished look. There were so many rules. At the time I only had the capacity to make tee’s and caps, because I was in school you know. But then what happened was really wild: I made some things that sold to some models who had walked the first Vetements show (fall 2015, Paris red.) and they’d worn some of these things, and by chance, Demna (Gvasalia, creative director at Balenciaga red.) had noticed, and then he found me on Instagram. At this point, making these pieces was really just for fun. I just took photos of my friends wearing these things I’d made. But then he wrote to me saying he really liked what I was doing “cool stuff, I wanna buy a cap for Gosha (…)” . So I sent him a cap and a few tees I’d made and before I knew it I’d made like 50 of these t-shirts that were sold to all of his friends and people he knew, all kinds of people in the industry that just liked the joke of it.

Do you still have some of these pieces you made back then? What was P.L.N then?

I have a red tee like the one I sold to Demna. I was inspired by quotes in this period. Like silly quotes. Without knowing that Vetements did a collection later on that was based on cartoon quotes, I also did the quotes thing because I thought it was funny. I think that’s why Demna thought it would be cool to invite me in. We shared some of the same ideas, humor playing an important part.

So where did this lead you?

I’d gone through some personal stuff and needed to get away, so I discussed my options with my good friend and collaborator Tobias Spichtig and he was talking so positively of Berlin and the buzzing creativity there. He suggested reaching out to Christa and Cosmia of Ottolinger, which I did and was lucky enough to end up working with. My time in Berlin has helped create so many good things for me, both on a personal level, but also creatively. The people I met there were welcoming, ambitious and dreamy in a very unique way. My experience with being in Berlin was the complete opposite of Paris. I ended up finding myself in Berlin and feeling really inspired by meeting like-minded people and experiencing the sense of growth, the room for growth and for me, and it made me feel good about my work.

You make it sound so simple?

I like the [naivete] in stuff. I read about the Antwerp Six and the way they worked and where they came from, you know, some of them just started by sitting in front of a sewing machine making stuff because they thought it was fun! No following rules strategically to get to certain places. And that part of making clothes I like, I strive to keep with me. I really want P.L.N to be a place that will make stuff for the runway, that’s made here in the studio, by hand, by me or other designers working here. I want space for craftsmanship. I wouldn’t be making clothes if it wasn’t for the craftsmanship of it. The hands on part of making the garments. Making pieces by hand is what drives me. I feel like today it’s more and more about fame and fortune, less about the process.

So you’re a craftsman, you’d like to stay hands on always? Even if or when P.L.N grows bigger?

With all respect to creative directors and designers in that position, I’d prefer to be very hands on. Maybe that will change in the future but I really like to be in contact with the material of what I’m working with as much as possible.

So everything can change, but what is P.L.N, are you committed to being a counterpart? Say if things turned upside down, and that very culture that started P.L.N has adopted your visual aesthetics, would you do a take on the preppy vibe? Say it’s all of a sudden avant garde to look like a preppy high school student…

That’s a good question… ha…! That’s a really good question… But, aesthetically I know I’ve found myself. I know I’ve found something that I want to hold on to. I know that times change, fashion changes, I am making clothes after all, but I think what I do with the dark silhouettes, the dark tones, black in general, I’m gonna hold on to that. It’s important to me to hold on to the rawness of it. I just feel very at home in this… And I’d like to believe that it reflects in the garments I’m making, just how much at home I feel in it.

Counterpart to a certain extent, but there’s more to P.L.N than playing that part of a rebel to something else…

I really like keeping a through line. For example, the collection I’m working on now refers to the first things I made, there’s recurring elements. I like when things reappear, giving a sense of history. Rather than focusing too much on the concept of new, the idea is to work with the stuff that works a little longer, develop them over time. I believe that if you constantly focus on the newness of things, you wear yourself out. I like coming up with new stuff and the process of coming up with new ideas, but when an idea works in one collection, I want to bring it into the next. Maybe by using a different color or texture, but if the silhouette works, I like to keep it.

There’s the element of time that poses a really big challenge in creating garments. If you think about other creative art forms, great things and ideas take time to bring to life. Fashion is very challenged in that aspect as things are over sometimes before they even take root!

Things do take time, which is also why I’m relying on advice from people around me, like inter.agency who’s working on the show and helping me define stuff like how big the collection is going to be and such. As of now P.L.N is still quite small, so it’s only possible to make one collection a year, but I feel extremely good about that because then I know that the choices I’ve made during the process weren’t rushed. Fashion is a fast-moving thing and talking to people in the industry only empowers my choice working around the seasonal timeline. It’s not going to be Spring/Summer or Fall/Winter collections, for me it’s collection I, II, III and so on. To me some things get lost in the race and the fixed seasonal schedule, I don’t want to do that, I want to do the ideas that I think are cool, regardless of the season, you know?

Of course, which also challenges the culture when it comes to buying clothes.

Yeah, right! I like when people reflect on their buys. Rather than buying more of lesser quality, then invest in things that might take a little longer to commit to, but that also last longer in their wardrobe.

And this is sustainable! On that topic…?

I work with sustainability a lot, and that’s not to be self-righteous, but I just really like to use materials that I know have been used for something else, and then reintroduce them in a different way. It creates an aesthetic expression that I really love, I dress this way myself. These fabrics have had another life and this will be even more present in collection II which I’m working on now. I like that the pieces I’m making already have a history, so when people ask: “What is this made of?” My answer is; “Well, all kinds of jeans that I’ve collected all around and thought would be cool to put together in a certain way.”

Your garments are dominantly dark and black color scale, what’s your relationship with the darker tones?

Uh, I don’t know… As a teenager, feeling a bit insecure and spending a lot of time on Tumblr…

Back when it was good…!

Back when it was really good! I still use it quite a lot actually, because I think… It just works for me, There’s a lot of really good reference points to different things that I’m inspired by. But back when I was like 15-16 years old, feeling insecure about myself, the stuff I encountered through that platform just resonated and gave me, I don’t know how to explain it, but a sense of a way of looking at things, seeing them. I did grow up as a typical sporty boy, playing soccer and what not, but this was just something that I had to myself, that nobody knew about; not my brother, my parents, anyone. It was just something I had to myself and spent a lot of time on.

The internet as a little private window?

Yes, a window into something creative. And I think this is really where something took root in me: That I wanted to do something creative. I thought clothes were interesting, and the industry looked exciting to me.

How does music affect your world? Musical inspiration?

I became really inspired by Coil (British experimental group from 1982 red.). The way their foundation was built, how their concerts were also based in art. It wasn’t just a band on a stage there was a visual side to it, they had a very dark and gloomy universe that excited me. I’m really fond of electronic music as well. The darker sides of electronic music like Cristoph De Babalon. I loved looking at old album covers. The darker and mysterious the better, something about that vibe just appeals to me. So I spent a lot of time researching these artists and I even bought some collectors items because I was so into it.

Like what?

From Coil I bought this book, not too long ago actually, Olivia gave it to me for Christmas, their whole universe, gathered in one object. Heavy book with everything they’ve done from invites to their events and poems and lyrics, art… Actually they were very inspired/affected by when the internet came around and that you could sit in front of a computer and create art online, they were mixing that with handwritten style invitations, and the way they were mixing things was really exciting to me. Also The future sound of London, their universe was also art and music hand in hand, every album had a mood and a theme, visually. That was always so exciting to me, opening up a cd and discovering the album artwork. Going through my dad’s cd’s. The effort that’s been put into creating this makes me so happy. Even though some might say it’s not sustainable to print this shit and make it physical, I mean I have cd’s that go back to the 80’s and 90’s. And they hold up! I go to these for inspiration today.

You like to explore, to get close, deeper… Collaborators, dream collaborators?

I like working with others! Like when I worked with Tobias (Spichtig red.), this collaboration means a lot to me on a personal level, the way he opened up his life to me, with his partner. And I was invited into his space in Berlin. I love his art. That's one thing, but we had a creative process together, and I love sharing the process with others. I love doing my own thing, but the process of collaborating is cool. He would bring up an idea and I’d be like “of course!” Activating something that would develop going back and forth between us, which is also something that defined the first P.L.N collection a lot, that he was part of it.

The oilskin jacket e.g. is a pieces that actually started out with Tobias coming to me saying “ so these priest’s cloaks…They’re really beautiful!”, and coming from Switzerland, born and raised, he showed me some references which made me dive into research on clerical clothing. I suggested taking this long part , the bottom part that kind of goes out, but then mixing it with the feminine cinching at the waist. And then this cloak came to be and it’s an item that I’m very very proud of. And then I started discussing the material for this coat with Lucas, we studied together, to figure out the right material to make it durable which led to the discovery of oil skin. This is used a lot in English hunting gear culture because of its water-repellent properties. And then I was like, hmm how do you give the fabric this finish yourself? So I ended up making the oilskin finish. I love that now I have this super durable piece of clothing that will last like a lifetime if you take good care of it. And I love the idea that people buying this coat from me will have it for many many years, maybe even pass it on. It’s not gonna break after a few seasons. So this is an example of a piece I want to keep making and recreating as a part of P.L.N.

Your first show is this August, what can we expect, what can you share so far?

It’s really important to me that the show is a collective experience. It will take place outside. I want it to be an experience that people leave taking something with them; senses stimulated and activated. Of course I want to show the collection, but it’s also important to me that there’s something else, something more. The location is an area that’s gonna be turned into a public space, nature. Right now it’s really raw, in the making, just a really long gravel road which will be the runway. I love when runways are long! I’ve always been super fascinated by Saint Laurent’s shows, because you get to really study the clothes and see the details, spend time with the details. And the models too, they don’t just walk in and out, they have a chance to get into character and live the long walk! And the casting is really important of course. Olivia (Danielsson red.) is working on the casting, and it’s really important to get people that fit the vibe of P.L.N overall.

Who can join the show? Open, closed list?

Anybody, I want to invite anyone who’s interested to come. Of course there’s some practicalities that have to be in place with the location, but I do want to invite people who aren’t from the industry to join us. Margiela’s first runway show (red. SS90) was open, and the community around the location was a part of it. I want to be able to invite the people who are up for it to come and see it, I want it to be open. I don’t want it to be too precious.

Who do you want to wear P.L.N??

It’s for everyone. I know that might sound naive, but when I’m working on and developing new ideas, I don’t consider age e.g., I know that right now the people buying my pieces are younger but I’m not aiming to make a brand that only speaks to a younger crowd.

As I mentioned I’d love to make pieces that are passed down and can be shared. That's something P.L.N stands for. It’s garments for people who aren't afraid to stand out. I don’t think my designs are that crazy but I do like to make some things that make people feel special and outstanding. There’s a lot, and very subtle things happening at the same time… Yeah, I guess maybe I am aiming for a certain kind of “classic with a twist.” Hehe I love seeing something like a blazer, which has been around forever, jeans etc. But then you get a bit closer, and then maybe there’s something different about the silhouette, or an unexpected texture. That being said, I am working on some pieces that feel a bit more risky! So I am working on some pieces that are less subtle for the collection.

Location, location location… you’ve spent time in both Paris and Berlin now Copenhagen, where does P.L.N belong?

I feel like there’s an opening for me here in Copenhagen to do what I’m trying to do, and stand out with it. And to make something that’s not already here. And now I’m here. I just got this studio space with Olivia, and I like it here. This more raw and gloomy aesthetic isn’t exactly the norm here, and I don’t mind being a designer that adds that to the picture. I prefer it that way actually. Though I haven’t been here a lot, I think there’s great people in Copenhagen. Sensing a Berlin vibe. There’s people here that recognise what I’m trying to do, and I’m finding kin.

Any comments?

I don’t mind being that unexpected act stirring things up. People can know that about me.

They will…