MIKKUSU

For the design of Iteke Hemkes' Fabrics I participated in the project Mikkusu. Here she explains a little of the intentions of her design:

"Mikkusu means ‘mix’ in Japanese. In more than one way these fabrics are a mix. There is the use of different textures, patterns with different connotations, references to African fabrics, as well as to traditional Japanese elements such as folding techniques and use of shadow. This project is also a synthesis between my work as a graphic designer and illustrator and my affinity with fashion.
For the patterns of my fabrics, I drew inspiration from my travels, past ones as well as imaginary future ones. Ancient Roman archeological sights I encountered on my visits to Italy but also the dreamlike scenery of mountains that moved before my eyes from the train windows in Mongolia and China.

For this project I collaborated with photographer Lauren Hillebrandt, whom I chose specifically because of her use of vibrant colours and her focus on both collage and still lives. For every picture we sought to integrate a part of the human body into a colourful still life. To add a layer of playfulness to the composition of the photos we made use of trompe l’oeuil effects: presenting a fabric flowing as liquid from a bottle to underscore its fluidity, a fabric that represents something as light as a breath of air, or the soundwave of a scream and the illusion of perspective by the use of paper."

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Fabric Dessins - Iteke Hemkes
Photography - Lauren Hillebrandt
Art Direction - Iteke Hemkes & Lauren Hillebrandt
Model - Aminanta Minte
Makeup Artist - Irene Tjebbes
Text - Fabienne Rachmadiev

For more of Iteke's art, you can visit http://www.itekehemkes.com/
For more of Lauren's Photography you can visit http://laurenhillebrandt.com/