Katrien Van Hecke

DESIGNER NAME: Katrien Van Hecke

BACKGROUND: “Belgian designer Katrien Van Hecke completed her studies at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Ghent in 2008. Since then she has worked for Bernhard Wilhelm, Christian WIjnants and Hussein Chalayan.”

SIGNATURES: “Organic hand-dyed artisan garments, woven jacquard designs and knits.”

TRADEMARK PIECE: “The organic hand-dyed silk dress.”

IDEAL CLIENT: “Urban city women with a young spirit. They have their own creative mind and buy 'Katrien Van Hecke' because they are aware of the handicraft and unique prints of the dresses.”

THE COLLECTION: “The ageing of materials. What once was clear becomes faded. It is the shadow of its own self and might be even more beautiful than before. I took a picture of the moon and because my camera moved the moon became heart-shaped. This symbolizes that things are not exactly as they seem. To translate the story line I developed my own colour language through extracting colours from natural ingredients such as mint, juniper, elderberry, eucalyptus, camomile. The print itself is made from cut-outs and based on airbrushing techniques. Fabrics are fluid or stiff and puffed. Using recycled yarns from old garments makes the romantic idea of the ageing of materials become reality.”

CULTURAL INFLUENCES: “I'm very influenced by the rhythm of classical music while working. As I see the research aspect of my work as something chemical and I have to use a lot of mathematics in preparing the colours, I believe the rhythm of music is very related to what I do. The only difference is the output or translation of the formulas.”

PLANS FOR 2013: “To make people aware. To show them craftsmanship, sustainability and beauty.”