Walter Van Beirendonck ( 04/02/1957 )

This installation reproduces designs from Dream the World Awake, the first large-scale retrospective of Walter Van Beirendonck’s body of work presented by the Antwerp Fashion Museum in 2011. Over three decades, Van Beirendonck has built up an impressive international career. He is the maverick of the Antwerp fashion scene and became primarily known for his colorful designs, his spectacular fashion shows in Paris in the 1990s under the W.&L.T. label, and the critical messages on society he proclaims in his designs. His work combines the most diverse sources of inspiration, ranging from technology, art and pop culture to spiritualism and ethnography. His designs are characterized by strong graphics, innovative cuts and unexpected color combinations. Van Beirendonck examines the frontiers of beauty, creating his own interpretations of concepts imposed by society, for example, in terms of gender and sexuality, and incorporates topical themes, such as ecology, AIDS and mass consumerism into his collections and presentations. He also works on many other projects including designing costumes for theater, ballet and film, curating expositions, designing objects, participating in think-tanks for commercial projects and products, image-making for pop-groups, and illustrating books.

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