In a time when digital media and late-stage capitalism accelerate the consumption of media, goods, and culture, countless labels follow the market and profits rather than directing the public’s wardrobes. Much of art has become derivative, attempting to reclaim a nostalgic era rather than formulate something new. The demand for original ideas grows. Hussein Chalayan is no exception to innovation, acclaimed as a fashion legend among creatives. The Turkish Cypriot designer fuses fashion, technology, politics, and performance, blurring the lines between art and fashion.
At 18, Chalayan settled in London. He attended the prestigious BA Fashion program at Central Saint Martins in the 1990s. The environment of students from various creative disciplines ultimately shaped his development as a designer.
“CSM wasn’t a fashion school. It was an art school and fashion happened to be a department in it” - Hussein Chalayan
Chalayan’s 1993 graduate collection, “The Tangent Flows,” put him on the map. Silk garments were buried in a friend’s garden for three months and removed before the show. The textiles appeared decomposed, conveying the haste of fashion dying and the possibilities of recycling. Furthermore, Chalayan’s approach focused more on the making process, challenging the industry’s dedication to the finished product.
Chalayan launched his namesake label in 1994 and presented looks that provoked conceptions of fashion. His 1996 Burqa collection included models wearing burkas of different lengths, decreasing from full-body enclosure to merely a face mask. While the models’ bodies were concealed to varying degrees, their faces were all unidentifiable. Therefore, the masking of one’s face removes identity regardless of how covered the body is. This tested Western defiance of burkas as patriarchal oppression versus Islamic interpretations of modesty. Regardless of one’s stance, it is notable how Chalayan used fashion as a tool to spark reflection and dialogue.
Another powerful display of Chalayan’s fashion as food for thought is his Autumn/Winter 2000 collection. The stage was a model living room with four chairs, a coffee table, a television, and vases. Four models approached the chairs, removed their gray covers, turned them inside out to reveal different colors, and put them on as dresses. As the models stood and faced the audience, men in hazmat suits transformed the remaining wooden chairs into briefcases and placed them next to the models. Afterward, a model slowly walked toward the coffee table, removed a lid from the center, and stepped in to take its place. In a dramatic moment, the model raised the table with handles and connected it to her waist harness; the table transformed into a skirt. As buyers and press witnessed the historic fashion moment, the room erupted with applause.
Chalayan’s show was not just for the sake of a wow-factor but took inspiration from war refugees who commonly carry belongings on their backs while fleeing their homes. His original country experienced conflict in the 1960s and 1970s. Furthermore, the furniture transformed from domestic objects to clothes. This displays Chalayan’s perception of the body as a structure around which clothes are made to cocoon. The show exhibited his ability to provoke ideas and narratives through fashion, establishing him as one of the greatest British designers.
The use of technology is another significant component in Chalayan’s practice of evocative fashion. Like his performances, technology is used purposefully to express an idea rather than for its own sake. In Spring 2007, he showcased a collection called “One Hundred and Eleven,” which paid homage to the legacy of women’s fashion. Robotic garments represented various eras, conveying the journey of womenswear from 1900 to 2007. Chalayan collaborated with the engineering company 2D3D to produce garments that mechanically changed shape.
“The only new work you can do in fashion is via technology.” - Hussein Chalayan
The signature dress took the form of a Victorian gown, which moved and morphed into a 1920s flapper dress and then into the minimal design of the 1960s. Monofilament cables in hollow tubes were sewn into the piece, connecting to motors that pulled wires attached to the dress’s exterior. With the push of a button, Chalayan’s dress showed the transformation of dress without the need for changing into another.
Chalayan’s collections moved audiences and fashion fans. In his Spring/Summer 2009 collection, he depicted the phenomenon of movement. Chalayan generated designs and computer renders of fluid forms, appearing frozen in time. Giant molds were crafted to produce rubber dresses, which were then airbrushed and lacquered to create a glossy finish.
“The molds are really beautiful in their own right, but showing them is about process and the in-between moments. I always talk about movement and animation in my work, but this instead is the monumentalization of the frozen moment. A freeze frame.” - Hussein Chalayan
Chalayan’s development processes are arguably just as interesting as the completed looks, making him one of the first fashion designers to have solo museum shows. As the worlds of fashion and art production clash with the current economy and politics, it is important to remember that fashion extends beyond stylish collections to expand one’s closet—it is an instrument for expression, conversation, and inquiry.
