#IrisvanHerpen

Following my last article about 3D Printing, I couldn’t miss an opportunity to write about one of the brightest and most talented designers out there; Iris van Herpen.

One of the first designers to use 3D Printers in collaboration with graphic designers and architects, van Herpen presented her printed work at Paris Fashion Week in January 2013, scooping the prestigious Golden Eye prize at the Dutch Design Awards 2013.

For her collection, Voltage, she collaborated with MIT architect and designer Neri Oxman and 3D Printing Company Stratasys to create a textured cape and skirt. An intricate dress made by selective laser sintering was designed with Austrian architect Julia Koerner and printed by Belgian Company Materialise.

Van Herpen said; “I feel it’s important that fashion can be about much more than consumerism, but also about new beginnings and self-expression, so my work very much comes from abstract ideas and using new techniques, not the re-invention of old ideas. I find the process of 3D printing fascinating because I believe it will only be a matter of time before we see the clothing we wear today produced with this technology, and it’s because it’s such a different way of manufacturing, adding layer-by-layer, it will be a great source of inspiration for new ideas.”

Van Herpen has recently presented her Spring/Summer 2015 collection, a ready-to-wear collection inspired by the magnetic forces of nature, with volumes and origami-like laser cut plastic details, prominent in the overall design. A metal-fusion shoes complimented the whole vibe of the wardrobe ensemble, clearly visualizing "Magnetic Motion" as the title of the collection presented for Paris Fashion Week at the rooftops of Beaubourg.

Black dress:

First dress ever to feature Thermoplastic polyurethane (mostly found in mobile phone cases), the black cocktail dress was developed by Iris van Herpen in a collaboration with Julia Koerner, an Austrian architect, as well as Materialise. 

Cape and skirt:

This was the first piece ever created using a FDM 3D printer.  It brings color and texture to 3D printing.  Resulting from a new collaboration between Iris van Herpen and Neri Oxman from MIT’s Media Lab, this piece was 3D printed by Stratasys.  

Jewelry:

The Voltage collection featured one more 3D printed piece. Renewing her collaboration with Isaie Bloch, a fascinating neck accessory was created.

-A.N.