Because the exhibition on designer Iris van Herpen can shock your senses

From November 29, 2023 to April 28, 2024, the Musée des Arts Décoratifs in Paris highlights the work of haute couture designer Iris van Herpen, a true sculptor of the senses. She draws a lot of inspiration from natural sciences and new technologies, from the infinitely small and the infinitely large, to give life to her clothes that always push the boundaries between fashion and contemporary art a little further. This is why this Parisian institution has decided to put a hundred of her textile creations (often masterfully 3D printed) into dialogue with works by artists from other fields.

Who is Iris van Herpen?

Born in 1984, the Dutch Iris van Herpen graduated from the ArtEZ Hogeschool for art in Arnhem in 2006 and created her own brand the following year after having learned her skills at Alexander McQueen. In 2009, she received her first Dutch Media, Design and Fashion Awards and gained international notoriety by featuring in the official haute couture calendar in Paris since 2011. In 2012, the Groninger Museum had already dedicated an exhibition to her (so eventually of six years of practice for your own home!).

Iris van Herpen’s know-how contrasts with that of the industry because it combines artisan techniques and new cutting-edge technologies including 3D printing to create clothes with an extraterrestrial look. In terms of materials, the 39-year-old Dutch designer loves to use plastic with an optical effect, metal gauze, resin, leather or even plexiglass to bring her collections to life, sometimes inspired by the virtual (Radiations, invasions2009; Evasion2011), sometimes natural phenomena (Crystallization2010; Synesthesia, 2010). This retrospective exhibition at the Decorative Arts therefore looks promising, whether you are a fan of fashion, new technologies, contemporary art or even architecture.

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