I’m wearing black leather ankle boots by Marni, a grey turtleneck in fine knit and a long black wool coat with pocket flap-belt finishing, both made-to-measure by Cos. A hundred different white fabrics look the same on a Skype or a Zoom call, and it was difficult to order fabric for the same reason. Official Facebook Page of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp / AP University College Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our User Agreement (updated as of 1/1/21) and Privacy Policy and Cookie Statement (updated as of 1/1/21) and Your California Privacy Rights. I’m wearing a navy blue double-breasted suit with a white ruched jabot shirt, black and white straight-leg trousers, and a pair of white leather boots. Vogue may earn a portion of sales from products that are purchased through our site as part of our Affiliate Partnerships with retailers. The beauty of this is that it makes total sense.” The graduating class of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp is showcased on June 27, 2020 from 8pm CET, on www.showww.be. The great difference between the Academy and similar study courses at technical institutes is in the creative approach. It does urge our creativity in a new and unknown way, though. A daily recap of the biggest runway news, latest trends, and emerging designers. In the ’80s, the city’s abundant ware­houses helped cultivate a thriving underground scene. In 1663, David Teniers the Younger, the master of the Guild of Saint Luke, an association that had been vital to Antwerp’s artistic development during the 16th century, founded the Royal Academy of Fine Arts, a school whose alumni, ranging from Vincent van Gogh (1885-86) to the fashion designer Demna Gvasalia (2002-06), have continued to shape the world’s culture. For much of the past half millennium, its character has been defined by this geographical quirk. Search . See the graduation collections of the class of 2015 at the fashion show of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp. Obtaining materials, as non-essential vendors such as fabric and stationery stores were all shut. Production: Mindbox. Indeed, Van Beirendonck, who has overseen the Royal Academy’s fashion department since 2007, says the most important quality an applicant can possess is that they are, above all, “culturally hungry.”. “We believe in the power of creativity, and that it can make a difference.”. THE CITY OF ANTWERP in northern Belgium is, somewhat confoundingly, both Europe’s second busiest seaport and located 50 miles inland from the nearest sea. It has served as the learning centre for many Belgian fashion designers. I think we will figure it out one day though. Everything I’m wearing is second hand. “We look at everything with a certain distance,” says Van Noten of his city’s residents. VOGUE.COM - The fashion department at Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp is undoubtedly one of the most prestigious fashion design programs in the world. With a reputation for instilling an avant-garde sensibility and high standards of creative excellence, the institution has impressive alumni to match — think Martin Margiela, Demna Gvasalia, and Kris van Assche, as well as the famous Antwerp Six who … Photo assistants: Joe Reddy and Samir Dari. What is less recognized is the influence of the Royal Academy in the early ’80s, when its students made work that would transform the worlds of fashion, art and theater. Music is often a starting point for my work. While the six designers were fiercely individualistic — “We each wanted to be different from and better than the others,” recalls Demeulemeester — they were also friends who exchanged ideas from their own spheres of interest and from nearby cities. How the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp — a city poised on the edge of Europe and the rest of the world — became the incubator for the contemporary avant-garde. Since my hair has become whiter, I’ve started enjoying wearing white. Demeulemeester recalls a favorite nightclub called Cinderella where “people from the academy, from the harbor and punks” danced together. Two important milestones have changed fashion history forever. Showing results over the phone was challenging. The school is known for producing a host of ultra-talented alum including Dries van Noten, Demna Gvaslia, and Martin Margiela, but from the sound of things, those successes come at a very high price. At the end of September, schools and universities in Belgium reopened their doors with social-distancing precautions in place. While there is an artistic legacy — Pieter Bruegel and Peter Paul Rubens both made some of their most important works here — as well as the legend of the Six to contend with, there is also a desire for knowledge that is outward-facing rather than self-contented. With a reputation for instilling an avant garde sensibility and high standards of creative excellence, the institution has an impressive alumni to match, … Share. And it was in Antwerp’s cafes at the start of the next decade that the designer Raf Simons met many of his lifelong collaborators, including the photographer Willy Vanderperre and the stylist Olivier Rizzo. To revisit this article, visit My Profile, then View saved stories. “The freedom and one-to-one way of tutoring, as well as placing importance on storytelling, is what I love about Antwerp,” says former student and Antwerp Six member Walter Van Beirendonck, who is currently the academy’s head of fashion. One Perhaps because its growth abruptly ended in 1585, Antwerp never became a metropolis like London or Paris. The fashion department at Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp is undoubtedly one of the most prestigious fashion design programs in the world. Search. His look, which fused outsider youth apparel with traditional business attire, gained an immediate following. As COVID-19 restrictions are causing cancellations of public events worldwide, the Fashion Department of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp - AP University College decided to still show its student's end-of-year and graduate collections. The most important course is the one of fashion design. In a detailed statement responding to the allegations, Johan Pas said: “As you know, the fashion department of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp is highly esteemed and is counted among the most highly ranked institutes of its kind.” We couldn’t hug each other, but at least we were able to discuss our work in an almost normal way. Within this milieu, the pioneering theater director Ivo van Hove, who was then a student in the city, met his future partner and collaborator, the set designer Jan Versweyveld, who was enrolled at the Royal Academy at the time; they later opened a brasserie to fund their experimental joint productions, reinforcing Antwerp’s historic marriage of art and commerce, and making use of the city’s array of affordable, nontraditional venues (in 1981, they staged their first play, “Rumours,” in a disused laundromat). Jewellery Design Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp, Antwerp, Belgium. Though this golden age was short lived (the Dutch blockaded the Scheldt from 1585, when Antwerp surrendered to Spain during the Eighty Years’ War, until 1795), it forged the city’s rich and enduring cultural life: The economic boom created a market for art, allowing for printing shops, coffee houses and guilds to form. The material on this site may not be reproduced, distributed, transmitted, cached or otherwise used, except with the prior written permission of Condé Nast. It was challenging to feel enthusiastic about my own work. But less than a month later, after photographing this story, the entire country went into its second lockdown. I’m wearing my favorite sweater from Dries van Noten, an oversized shirt I stole from my dad, thrift shop trousers, Raf Simons hybrid sneakers, and my lucky underwear, which I keep for nice occasions like this interview. This collaborative spirit, as well as the competition inherent in a close-knit community, is partly what enabled the designers known as the Antwerp Six — Van Noten, Ann Demeulemeester, Dirk van Saene, Walter Van Beirendonck, Dirk Bikkembergs and Marina Yee — along with fellow alumni Martin Margiela, to transform Antwerp into a capital of intellectual, unconventional fashion. Whatever is on your city-trip checklist, Antwerp can offer it. As Dutch, Spanish and Portuguese merchants began traveling to and from newly encountered territories during the age of exploration, up to 40 percent of the globe’s trade passed through Antwerp’s docks, and along with silk from Turkey, peppercorns and diamonds from Africa and silver from America came immigrants and new ideas. Here you can explore a selection of projects, articles and photos connected to this effort. Welcome to Antwerp! 10K likes. I’m wearing a black turtleneck, a semi-sheer virgin wool Maison Margiela top, Bermuda pants I made myself, a deconstructed black vintage trench coat that I made, a ruby dégradé scarf from Morocco, and vintage Givenchy cowboy boots. The other two main courses are graphics and tailoring/ pattern design. * / * Share. I’m wearing a wool coat and blazer from my mother, a wrinkled and dyed shirt, transparent long sleeve silk shirt underneath, my favorite pair of jeans worn inside out, and pointed leather boots. The Royal Academy of Fine Arts offers bachelor and master programmes in visual arts, with a variety of specialisations: Painting, Photography, Graphic Design, Jewellery Design, Fashion, Theatre Costume Design, Sculpting, Printmaking and In Situ. The city is full of surprising highlights, discover them all during your stay in Antwerp. I love the freedom of artistic expression, alongside the understanding approach of the teachers. I’m being guided and pushed, but, at the same time, set free to do what I never thought I’d be able to do. FASHION SCHOOLS. I am very analogue, so designing for the camera does not interest me. Hair: Louis Ghewy at Management & Artists Group. In that way, we can rethink certain things and do things our own way.”. © 2019 Antwerp Fashion Department | Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp | ap.be Site by Davis Lam & Chris Gillis . A city poised on the edge of Europe and the rest of the world became the incubator for talents like Dries Van Noten, Luc Tuymans and Ann Demeulemeester. antwerp-fashion.be Notable alumni include Dirk Bikkembergs, Dries Van Noten, Haider Ackerman, Martin Margiela and Walter Van Beirendonck. Pascal Gambarte specializes in editorial fashion work. Ad Choices. From Thursday 17 September until Sunday 20 September, 80 masters in the Visual and Fine Arts of the Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp will be exhibiting their graduate projects at Masters 2018. Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp's 2017 Graduate Show. It’s good to give something back.” Rizzo adds: “At the end of the day I realise, these kids graduating now, in one way or another are the future of fashion. What were some challenges of doing coursework remotely? Jewellery design, Gold and Silversmithing Alice Newell-Hanson is the senior digital features editor of T Magazine. It really made a difference to physically see everyone. Fashion is a very hands-on subject, that’s why one of the main problems was showing our work properly. Since its belle epoque, Antwerp’s mercantile and artistic communities have converged in its social life. 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