1000 Ideas by 100 Fashion Designers

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016

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Carolin Lerch runs the

label Pelican Avenue.

Lerch was born in

Austria and moved

to Belgium in 1995 to

study fashion at the

Royal Academy of

Fine Arts in Antwerp.

After working for

Bernhard Willhelm,

she established her own

label in 2004 to question

the conventional

codes of fashion and

oppose the constantly

changing trends of

the Western fashion

industry. Consequently,

she elaborates on her

projects through a

wide range of media,

from photography and

video to installation

and performance. She

also works together

with multimedia

artist Michiel Helbig

using their common

platform–Pelican Video.

Her way of crossing over

different  elds gives her

collections a distinct

approach, parallel to

contemporary art, while

retaining meaning and

clearly conveying a

message in each project.

Carolin Lerch/Pelican Avenue

www.pelicanavenue.com

© Pelican Video

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© Pelican Video

© Bettina Komenda

151 INSPIRATION. It happens in the  rst

place by intuition. It starts as a vague idea

about a theme that interests me. I normally

only realize after  nishing a collection why

I chose a particular subject. Sometimes it

is even clearer for other people than it is for

myself. Using your intuition makes it easier

to give it a personal aspect.

152 M

ATERIALS. For me, the fabric is the

very start of the collection, when I begin to

think about the actual pieces of clothing. It

determines the shapes more than the shapes

determine the fabric. Going through fabric

swatches is an inspiring process that has a

lot to do with the craft of a designer.

153 D

EVELOPING A COLLECTION. The

shapes are a rather emotional and personal

expression of a creative language for

me. The concept and the image are a

subconscious process based on a personal

experience, whereas the fabric choice is the

knowledge–the professional back catalogue.

The more you know about clothes and work

with them, the easier it will get and the less

mistakes you will make.

154 Y

OUR RIGHT ARM? My boyfriend

and partner in our video platform Pelican

Video. On the one hand, he is my most

honest critic, but on the other hand his

enthusiasm helps me through difficult

periods. Besides, our common videos gave

Pelican Avenue its own way to express

fashion, its own identity.

155 B

RAND VA L U E S . I wanted to keep

possibilities more open by not using my

own name. I always liked synonyms

because they have a certain mystery and

Pelican Avenue (the street I live and used

to work on) has the feel of a lost glory.

It’s misleading because it has something

conservative, which it isn’t at all! I like the

confusion it brings up.

66 1,000 Ideas by 100 Fashion Designers

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© Biel Sol

© Tabassom Charaf

© Shoji Fujii

157 STYLE. I can not seem to get rid of

a certain simplicity in shapes. Even though

this is not totally a conscious choice, I

still avoid cuts and detailing that seems

unnecessary. Materials, colors, and motives

are things I tend to get fed up with from

time to time. It is the conscious choices that

change rather than the personal artistic

language that is developed instinctively.

158 S

TREET FASHION VS. FASH ION

DESIGNER. I think there used to be clear

development coming from the street, maybe

until the eighties. Nowadays what we  nd

in stores is more in uenced by a commercial

and economic masterplan than we

realize. Of course, there is a group of high

fashion designers that succeed in staying

independent.

159 A

DVICE. You can’t become someone

you are not. It’s better to accept this as soon

as possible and start making the best of it.

160 G

OOD HABITS. Fantasy and open-

mindness, self-criticism, endurance, and

self-assertion.

156

E

VOLUTION. I believe that

improvement is nothing to worry

about. It’s a natural thing that

happens when you concentrate and

continue to work consciously. It has

something to do with getting more

and more professional. What is more

difficult is to succeed combining

this craft with an innovative

strength.

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