Although it is said that humans can never out-create nature, Van Herpen shows a determination to do so, but with a certain mortal humility rather than artistic hubris. “When it comes to the intention and the effort and the love that goes into something, then I think that humans can be as good as nature,” she says. “But then when you think of evolution in the long run, it’s hard for people in a lifetime, whereas evolution goes back millions of years.” She continues: “One big outstanding question is whether we can really be as clever as nature in its circularity and its perfection in how things are continually renewed. I think when design gets there, we are very close to nature. But I must also be honest that this is not where fashion is at yet.”
Just as in her atelier, there is a realistic view of Amsterdam’s old wood harbour, where her team will often swim in the summertime (another connection back to water). Van Herpen, who is 39, grew up in Den Bosch, the famous birthplace of Hieronymus Bosch, the 16th century artist whose surreal, witty, and grotesque depictions of humanity remain shocking to this day. She conjures her vast repository of references by interspersing contemporary artworks, historical artifacts, nature documentaries, illustrated volumes and fossil fragments. This also extends the exhibition’s interest beyond fashion, drawing people’s attention to, for example, Collectif Mé’s black ocean mass, Ren Ri’s honeycomb architecture, Ferruccio Laviani’s glitchy carved wood armoire or Kate MccGwire’s bulbous feather sculptures.
Van Herpen says she felt ready to share much of herself. “All of the rooms together read like a diary for me. They are very personal,” she says as we reach the Mythology room, which she singles out as her favourite, in part because it showcases her earliest dresses from 2008, which were assembled from umbrella parts, but also because she finds parallels across time from Japanese parables and Greek allegories to modern life. “For me, this connects to the metaphors of our digital identities. It is really interesting how classical mythology is actually overlapping with some of the challenges of new technology.”
For her spring 2021 collection, Van Herpen filmed one of her designs on champion skydiver Domitille Kiger, an extraordinary endeavour that challenged the old chestnut about limits. She maintains that there will always be constraints, but she hopes people understand how the show ultimately conveys her freedom. “It’s not actually a theme but everything that I have been doing is about freedom. I’m really trying to stay out of the expectations that other people have within my discipline [regarding] being a fashion designer and an artist at the same time.”
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The show reaches its climax with Cosmic Bloom, a vivid installation of mannequins displayed as if defying gravity and dancing (Van Herpen’s main pursuit before pivoting to fashion), all dressed in the most colourful of her designs. To either side, images of the galaxy from the James Webb telescope act as background to pieces from the most recent collections. And not to be missed is the previously unseen photo of a model shot by Nick Knight at CERN, home of the Large Hadron Collider. It’s fair to assume that Van Herpen’s research-based bona fides factored into the invitation.