A Touch of Finnish Surrealism

Mention the word Finland and most of us will probably instantly conjure up in their minds images of idyllic forests and lakes.

But Finnish footwear designer Minna Parikka is set to add to these landscapes some bright shades of colour and a surreal touch.

After launching her own brand in 2005, Parikka created collections featuring shoes characterised by a sensual and joyful element. Angel wings, rows of ribbons and splashes of paint decorated the pumps from her latest collections that also feature knitwear designs and leather gloves.

Surrealist atmospheres are back in Parikka’s A/W 2010 collection that includes a series of colourful scarves and ankle boots and pumps with appliquéd Dali-esque ruby lips.

When did you discover you wanted to be a footwear designer?
Minna Parikka: Since I was a teenager. As a child I always handcrafted things, creating my own style. When I was 15, my sister wrote an article about shoe designer Andrea Phfister and suddenly a strange thought hit me: there were people whose job was thinking about shoes all day long! So I started being interested in fashion and product design and, when I was 19, I moved to the UK to study shoe design at De Montfort University. In 2002 I won the Young British Glove Designer of the Year award, even though I am not British, and the same year I moved to London for 2 years to work for an Italian men’s shoe company. I also lived in Como, Italy, and Barcelona, Spain, before I got homesick and decided to move back to Helsinki in 2005 to launch my brand.

There is always a sort of surreal element behind your designs that at times reminds of Elsa Schiaparelli’s work: does Surrealism inspire also the new collection?
Minna Parikka: Surrealism is a dream-like world where playfulness and fantasy meet. I want to create playful things that are also wearable. The A/W 2010 collection is called “Surreal Sigh”. It has references to the Surrealist movement like padded lips, massive bows and hearts and it’s all about a kind of dreamy and fantastic world.

How would you describe your work?
Minna Parikka: Sensual, seductive and spontaneous. My collections are always a combination of innocence and flirtation. I don’t like aggressive shoes, but I like feminine and soft lines. I love it when things look innocent but at the same time they have a sort of strong edge or little references to the world of fetish, like the ten masks I developed as an art project for a show in Paris by tearing apart some shoe samples and modifying them. A lot of my details and use of colours also hint at the world of comic book heroines.

You started as a shoe designer, but you recently also added clothes to your collections, do you find it difficult to coordinate all the different aspects of your brand?
Minna Parikka: Shoes are the most important things in my collection. I studied to be a shoe designer and footwear is my passion and first love. Yet I felt like building an entire Minna Parikka style starting from the shoes, adding the knitwear, gloves and bags and conceiving all these new pieces as extras that complement the shoes.

You also collaborated with the Crazy Horse cabaret: did you develop costumes for them?
Minna Parikka: My shoes and masks were featured in a show during a special Premiere Classe 20th year anniversary party. It was like living in a dream seeing my designs worn by the perfect Crazy Horse dancers!

Who are your favourite designers and who/what influences your work?
Minna Parikka: Girl can never have too many hats! I love British hat designers like House of Flora, J Smith Esquire and Stephen Jones. I wish people would wear more headwear. Both my mum and my sisters have been an influence in my career. My mum never managed to be your stereotypical housewife, but used to change my nappies with long red nails and wearing bright red lipstick. She helped me being independent and always pushed me to go for my dreams.

What’s the fashion scene like in Finland?
Minna Parikka: It is impossible to define what is Finnish fashion at the moment since, though the scene is tiny as there are few of us working in this industry full-time who have developed international businesses, we all seem to have a different take on fashion. This makes it impossible to define what Finnish fashion is at the moment. Besides, we do not have a fashion board or footwear association who can take care of us. That is the reason why it is very difficult to get the Finnish fashion scene established on an international level.

The Finnish Post Office included one of your designs in a series of stamps celebrating fashion: is Minna Parikka set to become a Finnish institution like the Moomin character?
Minna Parikka: I’ve always wanted to be a cartoon character, so
I would be thrilled to be the next Moomin!

What are you working on at present?
Minna Parikka: My S/S 2011 collection. I think it will be my strongest so far and it will feature pink rope bondage shoes with flower decorations that can be tied all the way up to your neck. This time it will be naughty rather than nice!

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