Photography: Studio Fræ Stylist: Anna Clausen Make up: Sunna Björk Erlingsdóttir Model: Hlín @Eskimo models Location: The Einar Jónsson Museum.
Photographer: Benni Valsson @Carole Lambert Stylist: Anna Clausen Make Up & Hair: Natalie Hamzehpour and Fjóla Bjarnadóttir with CHANEL Models: Tanja Forte, Urður Vala and Ivar @Eskimo models Location: Mosskógar, Camping Site.
For ten years Hugrún Árnadóttir and Magni Þorsteinsson have designed, manufactured and sold their designs all over the world under the label Kron by Kronkron. This includes roughly 1,200 varieties of shoes; a collection which forms the basis of their exhibition at the Museum of Design and Applied Art, which opens during DesignMarch. “Shoes must have been in the cards for us right from the get-go. Magni and I both had a special passion and fascination with unusual shoes when we were younger, and I even collected weird shoes, though not once did it occur to me that I’d be doing this for a living,” says Hugrún when asked how the couple’s big shoe adventure first began. “The last ten years have been like some crazy marathon run, and frankly kind of a ridiculous one at that. You’re always so busy working on whatever’s going on right now, and getting ready for the next big thing, that you hardly ever have time to look back at what’s come before,” she says, admitting that when she …
The video One Year and 10 Days was filmed at the Berserkjahraun lava field on the Snæfellsnes Peninsula. Sunna picked the lava field because the area resembled the no man’s land she imagined while she was working on her master’s project at ArtEZ, Grand Illusions of a Great Fashion Escape. She says that the video is a visual form of her research into what happens when a fashion designer isolates themselves completely from their everyday environment, influences, and the opinions of others. One Year and Ten Days from Magnus Andersen on Vimeo.
It has been two years since Icelandic fashion label KALDA successfully reinvented itself as a shoe label. We spoke to head designer Katrín Alda Rafnsdóttir. Why shoes? I have always been obsessed with shoes. After having spent some time designing clothes, I decided to shift gears and focus on shoes instead. It just felt like the natural way to go. How is designing shoes different from designing clothing? It takes a lot of time and effort to develop a shoe. Technically it’s a lot more complicated than clothing and it takes longer time in development. You need to think about the right fit, comfort, structure and wearability in a different way than clothes. What is your design process like? When I started the shoes I wanted a clean slate. Although the shoes are obviously a continuation of KALDA, they are a new product and I started from scratch. I went back to my roots, choosing materials that I was surrounded by while growing up. I thought a lot about my aesthetic in the process of …
If there was one thing that really captured the mood of the eighties in Iceland, it was Don Cano clothing. The colorful clothing, which made its debut at the beginning of the decade, was something new and totally fresh. At the time, breakdancing was at the height of its popularity. When the trendiest dancers and top athletes began wearing Don Cano, it wasn’t long before the brand had become one of the most popular fashion brands in Icelandic history. The clothes, which appealed to all ages, were exceptionally well made, light, and comfortable. At some point in the middle of the decade, the craze was so widespread that every other Icelander was wearing Dan Cano and people actually fought over the clothes when they arrived in stores. Now, three decades later, rumor has it that Don Cano is making a comeback. But is that just wishful thinking or is there some truth to the rumors? Jan Davidsson, the former owner and head designer at Don Cano, is the only person who can really answer …
‘I believe clothing affect people in so many ways – personally I always go for comfort. Feeling good in your own skin and clothes has a positive effect on everything you do’ says Helga, the designer behind the clothing label Helicopter. When designing, Helga is inspired by nature – working mostly with colors and shapes, everything from Icelandic rocks and moss to flamboyant exotic birds. Helga’s latest collection took an unexpected turn when she decided to work with her former boyfriend and artist, Halldór Ragnarsson, after he contacted her proposing a collaboration including his work. Rising to the challenge, Helga created Helicopter’s autumn/winter collection ‘We Always Meet Again’, inspired by the past and its effect on the present. Available in October / November 2015. Helga Lilja graduated with a Bachelor degree in fashion design from the Iceland Art Academy in 2006, having also completed an exchange program at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam. However, she says that the three years she spent at NIKITA Clothing gave her the best education. Helicopter was founded in …
What was once a freezing house and fishing factory now hosts a group of creatives working on anything from knife making to ceramics to carpentry and textiles. All in all, there are 30 or so creatives working at the cluster. For a complete listing, see the end of the article. Text: Arnar Fells Gunnarsson and Arnar Ingi Viðarsson / Photos: Arnar Fells Gunnarsson The closeness makes for crossovers and creative collaborations, too. Knife maker Evangelos Tsagkouros and ceramist Hanna Gréta Pálsdóttir work together on a series on cups, while Hanna Greta also works with Jónína Ósk Lárusdóttir of the carpenter’s workshop bifurkolla.com for trays for her glass set. Björn Stefánsson on the other hand runs the company 3D Verk, whose equipment for prototypes and moulds comes in handy for many others at the house, too. Designers and creatives working at Íshus Hafnarfjardar: Evangelos Tsagkouros Krypteia Knives Bergdís B. Guðnadóttir ceramics Embla Sigurgeirsdóttir ceramics Hanna Gréta Pálsdóttir ceramics Sigrún Guðna Gunnlaugsdóttir crafts Anna María Karlsdóttir anthropologist Þórdís Baldursdóttir ceramics Unnur Sæmundsdóttir visual arts Sindri Snæsson crafts Sigrún …
Icelandic wool + rubber. An odd couple, yes, but this kind of pairing has garnered fashion and textile designer Magnea Einarsdóttir attention for her meticulously made yet wearable knits. Author : Ásta Andrésdóttir / Photographer Aldís Pálsdóttir “Knits are so diverse, everything from superfine leggings to big, handmade cable-knit sweaters. The possibilities are endless; my goal has been to do something fresh and get people thinking about knits in a new way.” In 2012 she graduated from the prestigious Central Saint Martins campus in London. Magnea’s fashion studies actually began at the Parsons campus in Paris after finishing her preliminary work at the Reykjavík School of Visual Arts. “The plan was to move mid-program to Parsons in New York to get to know two of the world’s largest fashion hubs,” she explains. “Then I found out I could take a semester at CSM as an exchange student and fell in love not only with the department structure within the fashion studies department — you can specialize in womenswear, knitwear, etc. — but also with the …
Fashion designer Hilda Gunnarsdóttir has created womenswear since 2012 under the label Milla Snorrason. Nothing is out of bounds for Hilda when it comes to fashion design — from wool sweaters to elegant silk dresses. Author: Ásta Andrésdóttir / Photographs: Saga Sig “For me it’s important that women feel relaxed and move freely in my garments. It’s entirely possible to look sharp in an unhampered and effortless way”, says Hilda. These days the label’s new knitwear line is catching on. The figures that decorate the thick, warm wool sweaters are adapted from oil paintings by the half-Icelandic artist Sara Gillies. Hilda also uses the figures in a pattern for cotton jersey dresses and leggings. “I wanted to design knitwear from Icelandic wool with an Icelandic knitting manufacturer because it’s important to me to take advantage of opportunities for local production, not only to do my part to support local manufacturers but also for environmental reasons. I developed the product in collaboration with the Varma mills and it turned out brilliantly,” says Hilda. The sweaters sold well …