We often tend to think that everything has been already done in certain disciplines such as fashion or in specific fields like knitwear or textile design. But this is not true as innovations can always be introduced.
Sadly, we don't see them very often as, making something genuinely innovative and making it with your hands is time-consuming and means investing energies and money in researching, engaging in a trial and error routine or turning Samuel Beckett's mantra - "Ever tried. Ever failed. Try Again. Fail Again. Fail Better" - into your daily motto. Yet, if you have this passion, this fire burning within, you will eventually make it. That's the lesson Xavier Brisoux is giving us with his work.
The French knitwear designer has been experimenting for quite a few years now to shatter the conventional notions around knitwear and renew this art. After creating armours and helmets for fantastic heroines and modern deities that were translated into visionary works by comic book artists and illustrators, Brisoux developed a series of objects that he dubbed "Totems".
Woven around a solid acrylic or metal core, these knitted vertical configurations are inspired by ancient symbols and biomimicry. Some of them look like the sort of weapon a powerful character in a film or a videogame may carry; others, seen from a distance, call to mind runes or quipus, they could indeed be symbols for a new secret alphabet or code by a civilisation from the future, or look as if they integrated animal shapes in their densely knit configurations. Is that a claw of a crab embracing the scepter or maybe the exoskeleton of a crustacean, an insect or a fossil wrapped around the body of the scepter, you wonder while looking closely at the artworks.
The totems or power scepters may be the perfect accessories to Brisoux's armours, but they also look like design objects of the kind you may spot in the house of a collector with a discerning eye and a passion for textile pieces.
Presented in June at the Révélations - International Biennial of Crafts and Creation in Paris, the "Totems" were praised by visitors and critics, but Brisoux also received another accolade. His "Watalognotte Silhouette" ensemble first won the regional selection and then the national selection at the Ateliers d'art de France competition, an event dedicated to the artistic vitality and know-how of artisans in each of the French regions.
So, yes, it takes time to create something innovative, to develop a technique with your hands, and it takes a lot of courage as well since you constantly fight against the many doubts that often assail the creative mind. Certainly, this is not a job that many of us can do. But all those who venture into these uncharted territories, all those who take the road "less traveled", to put it in Robert Frost's words, eventually reap the rewards.
Do you consider your totems a development of your knitted armours and with these pieces were you also trying to create power scepters for one of your armor-clad superheroes?
Xavier Brisoux: My process is an ongoing evolution and I tend to decompartmentalize the different fields of creation. For me, crafting a garment, an accessory, an object involves the same development. So, I tend to explore uncharted territories. The origin of the "Totems" series lies indeed in my general Maille Haute-Sculpture concept. This project I have been working on for a few years consists in creating wearable sculptures. I have had the chance to be selected for the 35th edition of the prestigious Festival International de Mode, Accessoires et Photographie in Hyères, and I presented my womenswear collection then. I am currently working on the menswear silhouettes of the project, and I wanted my characters to have power scepters, as you have guessed. However, at some point during the process I realized that these scepters could stand alone and become decorative objects of interior design. That's why I then developed more elaborate pieces. The scepter has become the totem of the character itself. It represents the deity without the body being present.
So far, you always worked on the human body and your shapes and silhouettes were based on anatomy. But, in this case, you created an inanimate object, a vertical sculpture. Was it hard to apply your multi-layered ribbed technique to this shape and silhouette?
Xavier Brisoux: It was a similar yet different process, in the sense that, now that I can control my technique even more, I am able to explore other volumes. In a way, working around the body gives me constraints, it is a good thing, but I thought I could also explore differently if I was moving away from it. With the idea of creating totems, I had other types of shapes in mind, and I explored further. It has enriched my process and my designs for the menswear pieces have therefore evolved.
The totems were displayed at the Révélations event in Paris: what kind of reactions did you get from visitors?
Xavier Brisoux: Yes, I had the chance to be selected for the Révélations biennale in Paris. This fair is showing the best of what craft is, be it in terms of creativity or technique. It was also the first rendez-vous to display properly in the context of the pandemic. So, I think everybody - exhibitors, organisers and visitors - were very eager to meet again. The particularity of this fair is that it is both a professional and public show. The attendance was incredibly dense and of quality. People visiting the fair know exactly what they are coming for and they have high expectations. It was a very good show. The work I showed there was very well received. I had visitors nonstop for the full duration of the show and I made great contacts. I think people were generally surprised by what I propose. I have received a lot of love during this show!
Will you keep on adding more totems to this initial collection of 5 pieces?
Xavier Brisoux: Once the five totems were standing together for the photos I realised that the sum of them was stronger than each piece. It has given me the will to do more of them, with different formats, different heights, even working with the notion of circle totems. It is becoming sort of a code, a new alphabet. I am very fond of American comic books. In the last development of the X-men, especially in the House of X saga written by Jonathan Hickman, the X-men have created their own language. In a way, I was influenced by this, and I am now creating my own language with these pieces. I intend on creating around 25 pieces in total. In a world that tends to deconstruct languages and impoverish the nuances in words, I want to take an alternative direction.
Talking about fairs and events, your Watalognotte Silhouette ensemble won the regional and national selection at the competition organised by Ateliers d'Art de France. How do you feel about winning them both?
Xavier Brisoux: The annual competition organised by Ateliers d'Art de France aims at promoting the work of new artisans who are highly creative and master of their craft. The competition is open to any sort of crafts - be it marquetry, ironworks, textile or any other. There were very strong and creative projects, and I found it inspiring to be part of it. In this kind of event, you can see other people's practices and understand their discipline. The highlight for me, competing for the regional edition (Hauts de France – the north of France) was to be able to be exhibited in such a wonderful building: le Palais de l’Art Déco in Saint Quentin (View this photo), it used to be a very recognised department store in the Art Deco style, and it is now a place for exhibitions. The city of Saint Quentin has a great Art Deco heritage, and your readers who have been following my work must have seen the photos at La Villa Cavrois and probably remember how much I am fond of that architectural period. I did not expect to win either, but I did! For regionals, I had really worked on having a poetic presentation reflecting what my work is about. And I think the jury was particularly sensitive to that aspect. For the national competition, we had to submit a video. I had to try and recreate that poetry, that sense of unveiling, that mystery. Feeling that what I do meets an audience is always very flattering. I try to stay modest in what I do and the fact that my process requires time, always brings a lot of humility to me. Having said that, seeing people's positive reaction is always reassuring and comforts what I try to create. After the Révélations exhibition this competition was another exposure, so I feel things are getting together. Winning the national section means I have access to a booth at Maison&Objet (19-23 January 2023) which is another important fair. It seems my work is in a positive impulse at the moment, so I have to keep it up that way!
At the moment you completely control your knitted pieces and you developed by yourself your trademark knitted technique, but would you ever let your creations be regulated by a bespoke algorithm designed to interpret your patterns?
Xavier Brisoux: At the moment no industrial machine can do what I do. And even if they could, I don't think any programmer would want to do a piece: it would take more time to program than to make! Having said that, I would love for someone to invent a new machine, in between a knitting machine and a 3D printer that could create pieces like mine. If any engineer reading this is interested, let's do something together!
In the last few years, you have focused more on artistic projects than on fashion collections, do you feel they fulfill your creative needs better than actual collections? Or do you feel that after Covid there is less need for conventional collections and you want to focus more on artistic projects?
Xavier Brisoux: Creating pieces and pieces, collections after collections did not make sense for me anymore. I could not be as creative as I wanted to be because the rhythm was so intense. I basically wondered how I could bring back the meaning of what I do, of what I am. A designer should challenge and question. Otherwise, what? If you design something that already exists, what is the point? And I had that feeling of achievement during Révélations: people told me that they had never seen anything like it. I felt humbled by their reaction. I do hope that fashion will move forward and become exciting again. The loss of Thierry Mugler this year was a disaster for me. After Alexander McQueen, I lost the reason I started fashion. They were my intellectual and creative mentors. I wish there was a new Mugler breaking all the codes and daring to push the boundaries of fashion.
Do you think your totems may be adapted into design objects or accessories for films or TV series one day? If you could collaborate with a costume designer who would you choose?
Xavier Brisoux: Of course, my whole Maille Haute-Sculpture concept could be integrated in a sci-fi film or series. It has so many references to superheroes movie, to HR Giger, for example, and so on, I was very impressed by the costumes for David Lowery's Green Knight movie (and I still don't understand why it was not released in France!), so I would love to collaborate with Malgosia Turzanska.
Talking about collaborations, the last time we spoke, comic book artists and illustrators had done for you a series of drawings inspired by your collection. Did you take this project further and are you planning more interactions with comic book writers/illustrators?
Xavier Brisoux: Well, this is a long-term project. I cannot unveil too much on the matter, but I can tell you that this is ongoing. I have had the incredible luck of having Peach Momoko sending a breathtaking rendition of my piece Arunaya recently. I love collaborating with comic book artists, it is a world that is very different from fashion. Artists are very approachable, kind, nice and open. I was in Como in May for the Lake Como Comic Art Festival, and I was able to meet great artists willing to jump onboard the project. Stay tuned!
All images in this post courtesy of Xavier Brisoux
1 - 7. Totems by Xavier Brisoux. Photos by Studio.b.helle
8. Watalognotte Silhouette at the Ateliers d'Art de France competition, June 2022, Courtesy of Ville de Saint Quentin
9 - 11. Xavier Brisoux' booth at Révélations - International Biennial of Crafts and Creation, Paris, June 2022. Photos by Vinciane Lebrun @ Voyez-Vous.
12. Arunaya by Xavier Brisoux interpreted by Peach Momoko, Courtesy of Peach Momoko
Comments