Images Courtesy of SLEEK.
When stepping into ENDYMA Archive there is no museum like hush. Known for maintaining the world’s largest collection of archival Helmut Lang pieces (I KNOW!!), the space does select visits, and gave SLEEK the chance to take a peak at the methodology behind the “madness”.
Upon arrival, one is ushered into a room where the team stores pieces needing mending; music is playing, and the occasional chatter interjects, but the intensity and focus on the project never lessens. Every loose thread, every wear and tear, is addressed with the utmost care.
It is likely that the original wearer never guessed their grimy Raf Simons hoodie would ever garner this treatment. But ENDYMA founder, Michael Kardamakis, believes in fashion for fashion’s sake, and collects garments with the attuned eye of a curator rather than the impulses an industry buff. Having built a space in which fashion “nerds” can come and live their dreams, if only for an hour or so, ENDYMA acts as a commentary on the trajectory of the fashion system, drawing attention back to the “basics” (if OG Helmut Lang can be considered “basic”).
Image Courtesy of ENDYMA.
The first part of the collection which Kardamakis brings guests to see is, of course, the famed Helmut Lang room. When asked why Helmut Lang, a question that is probably becoming repetitive, he told a story. In Greece, the archivist purchased his first jacket by the designer; pre-90’s revival craze, these types of pieces were much easier to find. The garment was for personal wear, with the classic firefighter inspired high neckline, found cheap on a resale site. When seeing that the fit was not for him, Kardamakis flipped it for 300 euros on eBay.
Searching the address to which he had to send the piece, on Avenue George V, Kardamakis realized it was none other than Givenchy who had purchased the jacket – this moment was a click: collecting these garments was something of interest to people. The archive had the ability to grow.
When it comes to sorting through the wide selection that is out there, ENDYMA tries to attain almost any Helmut Lang piece they can find. Though some require more repair than others, the intentions are to acquire the most comprehensive archive possible rather than to pick and choose favorite pieces. There is no personal bias. Presenting most of the garments as they would be worn on the human form, the archive is not just academic. Immense levels of creativity are put into coming up with the best systems with which to preserve each garment; many have their own unique hangers DIY-ed by the team.
A milestone achieved due to all their hard work, the archive no longer needs to sell pieces, and very rarely does so. In the past, they sold a Helmut Lang dress to Kim K, thinking that maybe she used it as SKIMS inspo? We’ll probably never know. In terms of creating a full collection and garment preservation, it is better to store these pieces within the confines of ENDYMA. Now, the archive makes most of their money through renting out garments to design houses to be utilized for research.
Images Courtesy of SLEEK.
Looking through the pieces, from strapy tank tops to coats, the way in which shapes descendant from Lang’s are scattered around runways today is glaringly obvious. But, Kardamakis wouldn’t say Helmut Lang “did it first”; “some niche designer has always done something before, especially regarding the play on basics such as the tank top”. Instead, he highlights Lang’s conviction, knowing that what makes the garments special is the way in which a designer can make you see something simple and be wowed, wanting to have a piece of it. That was something Helmut Lang did best.
Every piece in the collection is more than what it seems on the surface; repetition within design is something attracting both collectors like Kardamakis and designers like Lang. “Most designers find something they like and stick with it” Kardamakis explains, while pointing out the intricacies such as small darts and cuts linking Lang’s collections throughout the years. This is how designers assert their staples.
Despite his immense knowledge, Kardamakis does not have a design background. He studied art history in school, possibly lending to his “outsider” approach when it comes to viewing pieces through an analytical lens. The reason that the first fashion pieces were stored for museums and collections was so that painters would be able to capture historical garments correctly. Perhaps this explains the founder’s desire to store, catalogue, and preserve.
Images Courtesy of ENDYMA.
Contrary to the title of this article, most of what has been discussed so far has been Helmut Lang, but those pieces act as only a fraction of the archive. Kardamakis wants his space to be a library, and knows ENDYMA “can’t be a library with only one author”.
The collection includes the likes of rare Dirk Bikkembergs and Craig Green. From old military pieces, through which many contemporary menswear designers found their roots, to vintage Destroy jackets, eclectic treasures can be found hidden across the archive. ENDYMA’s image of fashion as a whole isn’t valued by price tag – though they still jump when they find someone who’s undervalued a rare item.
Today everything is fashion, a phenomena which has helped create a buzz surrounding the archive; even those not directly in the fashion industry are eager to do “tourist-y” visits, and ENDYMA isn’t mad about it. Now, there is also an emphasis on making historically minded fashion decisions; with lots of uncertainty about the future, things become referential. The archive only has value when people engage with it, claims Kardamakis, and this longing for the past encourages the modern fashion media to engage. Though he has low hopes for any type of Diesel-like revival for Helmut Lang, the future of ENDYMA looks bright; with confidence in what they do, the goal is to just continue having fun and growing the collection.