Photo: Lineta Liduma.
Like many of us, 22-year-old Swedish designer Linus Leonardsson, who recently graduated with an MA in fashion from Antwerp’s prestigious Royal Academy of Fine Arts, looks back fondly on his misspent youth. Inspired by his adolescence in Stockholm attending uproarious forest raves, his MA collection — entitled See you in the fog — is a riot of luminous colour, playful detail, and an enticing texture that borrows from these heady days. But as much as the collection shimmers with a daring club-kid effervescence, there is also a smart timeliness to how the collection was made and designed. Leonardsson shuns the tired constraints of gendered fashion, instead creating unisex clothes that preach the values of a gender-fluid future. And not only that, the emerging talent has ensured his first collection is sustainably produced also: many garments contain upcycled elements as well as reused fabrics and handmade crochet. We caught up with Leonardsson to discuss his MA collection and to find out what inspired him to make something so lively and so vivid in the current era.
What is the inspiration behind the collection?
For this collection, I was mainly influenced by my adolescence and my concerns of not fitting into a grown-up world. It is set at a Stockholm forest rave and connects modern raving culture with new ways of preserving nature as well as craftsmanship. It is a collection of contradictions: technical materials versus natural rawness; daytime tradition in juxtaposition with the freedom of the night.
What do you think is special about the fashion scene in Antwerp?
I think because it is a relatively small city with a concentrated fashion scene it pushes you to find a very personal direction. If you don’t have a unique approach, there’s simply no space for you in that scene.
Your collection is inspired by forest raves, does it also include sustainable elements?
Definitely! A downside of forest raves is the trash left behind once the party is over. This was something I really wanted to take into consideration, especially considering the increasing climate crisis. I have actively been including as many leftover materials and even objects found on the street as possible. The majority of the materials used are leftovers from other designers or people around me. Some examples are up-cycled laughing gas canisters I found by the riverside in Antwerp, which I turned into jewellery. I also crocheted a top and various garment details from rope leftovers from an Antwerp knitting company.
Can you take us through the distinctive colour palette?
The colour scheme is taken from Swedish summer nights, when it’s never really dark and the sunsets and sunrises dominate the night sky. I’ve put this in contrast with the harsh colours of strobe lights reflecting on the otherwise mild and natural palette of the forest.
What elements of your collection do you think represent the current environment?
One of my main goals with See you in the fog was to erase expectations on gender based fashion. To me, limiting oneself to menswear or womenswear alone is a thing of the past, and by not coding garments by gender I think it’s possible to redefine what it means to be a person.
What type of fabrics did you work with?
I love glamour! But I am also very aware of the issues with the textile industry, so therefore I have been adapting my fabric choices a lot to what was available to me from other people’s leftovers. Astonishingly, the result is a mix of cashmeres, silks, tweeds and laces, which I’ve combined with some newly bought technical fabrics and materials that add shine and sparkle. This is how I see my way of dealing with sustainability and luxury, eventually I feel that a garment needs to be desirable in order to have a place in people’s lives. I’ve also focused on adapting the re-used fabrics to personalise them, and making my own fabrics by knitting and crocheting.
What would you like people to know about you or your work?
I want to spread positive vibes through my work, because I think emotional connections are underrated in fashion today. I believe that even though I am centering my work around serious social issues, it is equally important for anyone who encounters it to also fully enjoy the fantasy and glamour.
See more from his lookbook below:
Credits
Photographer: Lineta Liduma
Model: Jelle De Beer and Lisah Adeaga
Make up artist: Dorothy Vandemaele
Set assistant: Martins Rozenfelds