Lidewij Edelkoort: ‘Folklore is becoming a trend; the tunic is a universal piece of clothing’
Amsterdam – In forecasting the trends for summer 2020, Lidewij
Edelkoort follows the script of her previously published Anti-fashion
manifest. Slowing down, connecting, humanity and equality; these
subjects were all covered in ‘Li’s’ biannual Appletizer trend seminar
in Amsterdam’s Muziekgebouw on the IJ river. The fashion guru was
unwavering on two issues: folklore will become a huge trend and the
tunic will become a universal piece of clothing. FashionUnited
attended the seminar and summarises the highlights.
Before starting her presentation, Edelkoort revealed to the
audience that as she was taking notes on the current situation in the
world, she noticed how well the Netherlands is actually doing. At
hearing her words, the audience grew silent. “Right now, xenophobia
and racism are prevalent around the world. Democracy cannot withstand
such a large number of autocrats backed by enormous armies. The news
is rife with predictions of natural disasters and the fashion industry
remains one of the greatest polluters in the world,” Edelkoort
summarised. High time for change, Edelkoort revealed, or at least,
time for a counter-movement which, according to the forecaster, will
be shaped by introducing folklore into fashion.
Lidewij Edelkoort trend seminar spring/summer 2020
“The fashion industry is blocked. There’s no time to think, only
to produce and distribute. The result: old models are constantly being
introduced as ‘new fashion’. We keep repeating the same items in which
the differences are negligible. One season the shoe sole is a little
thicker, the next the studs are slightly more prominent, but in
essence, not much has changed,” Edelkoort briefly summed up the
industry. “We continue to run around in the same circle without any
innovation.”
A textile ‘revival’ is on the way to counterbalance the fashion
houses’ ‘speed and greed’, she announced. At the academies where
Edelkoort teaches, the students can all be found at their looms. She
jokingly refers to this as the Weave Wave, but meanwhile, she takes
the subject extremely seriously. “People are once again craving
garments with a soul.”
“The current political climate, with its trade wars, closing
borders and segregation of various cultures, calls for a new vision,”
Edelkoort announced. Folkloric fashion could play a unifying role in
that. “We would benefit from immersing ourselves in folklore and
realising that we have more in common with each other than we might
think.” In various places across the world, similar garments were
being designed and techniques were being developed simultaneously,
Edelkoort revealed to the audience. This notion could help the world
to think universally instead of nationalistically.
According to Edelkoort, when the topic of fashion and folklore
comes up, people become upset. At present, there is a growing debate
about who owns what, and patterns, colours and traditional dress are
being claimed by different cultures. This could be due to the
mishandling of the subject matter by so-called copycats who, according
to the forecaster, do not take the time or show the inclination to
sufficiently study their sources of inspiration, the use of colour,
the shapes and their related techniques, resulting in unimaginative
reproductions. She emphasised that it is important for fashion
companies to take responsibility for their role in this.
One of the items of clothing from folklore that ‘Li’ cited
throughout her presentation is the tunic. The tunic, kaftan or
‘tunesienne’ was simultaneously developed in Africa and Asia and is
worn by both men and women. Edelkoort also noted that the kaftan is
most likely going to play a role in streetwear. Coats and shirts,
which are growing increasingly longer, are already taking on a similar
shape.
During Li’s trend presentation, it became apparent that the course
that she plotted with her Anti-fashion Manifest of 2015 is one for the
future. “Fashion is dead,” she announced at the time. We are once
again going to focus on the clothes themselves. And that clothing
appears to be handmade, constructed with care, not subject to time,
and made to unify.
Photos: Lidewij Edelkoort via Appletizer
Oscar de la Renta spring/summer 2019 © Catwalkpictures