JOHANNES WARNKE:
“I don't see much of a difference between a painting or a sculpture and a couture piece,” says Johannes Warnke. “We might usually say that painting is art and that fashion isn't necessarily. But I think art comes more with the message and the intention behind it, as well, perhaps, as with the skill set that's involved in creating it.”
Like Andrea, a CSM BA Womenswear classmate of his, it’s the idea of clothes-making as an art form, rather than as an exclave of product design, that the young German designer builds his practice around. Referring to Schneiderkunst — the translation of ‘couture’ into his native tongue (which in turn becomes “tailoring art” in English) — a fundamental aspect of couture to Johannes is “the idea that you're investing a lot of thought and work into the detail, and that there are no compromises in terms of your vision”. He notes Thierry Mugler, Alexander McQueen, and Martin Margiela’s fabled stint at Hermès, as cases in point. “Couture isn’t about making historical dresses, but rather about what the artistic message is, what the artistic process is, and how much love and time was invested in it.”
Since graduating, the precise balance of romanticism, mysticism and theatricality have made his work particularly popular among musicians and performing artists -- most notably by Lady Gaga, who wears a sensuously draped, body-conscious gown in the video for “911”. It was a dream come true for Johannes, who between the ages of 6 and 20, formally trained as a dancer. Understandably, he holds fashion’s performative value especially dear. “I think that working with couture allows you to enter a sort of theatrical world,” he says, “working, for example, with dance theatres is another one of my long-term dreams.”
In this respect, Johannes’ approach to couture is perhaps better considered in terms of fashion as a purely cultural expression, rather than as something whose primary purpose is to be consumed. “Couture, to me, has the same reasoning as a painting, sculpture or installation, and I think that, if it's done well, it's a socio-political reflection of our time. Fashion should mainly be about exciting people and being part of a purposeful, positive, artistic expression, just like a theatre play is,” he says. “When couture actually fulfils a purpose beyond just being there to please a consumer, and to make them want to buy more, then I think it has the same relevance as art. We'll still be looking at the shows of Alexander McQueen or John Galliano for another 100 years because they were so exciting. And that, for me, is more relevant than anything right now.”
Indeed, beholding his delicate, elongated zero-waste gathers of hand-dyed and cruelty-free silk, you’re struck by an almost spiritual sense of quiet and calm. “I've been told it has some sort of spiritual expression, but that isn't something that comes from a planned concept or rational thought. My work very much comes from my soul, it’s something very intuitive,” he says. “I think that's something we have to appreciate more in fashion, and in our wider culture — the idea of intuition and irrational logic. Sometimes things don't make logical sense, but they do emotionally.”
His ability to communicate such ineffable emotions relies on a hand that’s been expertly honed. His time spent interning at Viktor & Rolf, Givenchy’s haute couture ateliers and Balmain’s embellishments department saw him work in line with the regulations prescribed by the Chambre Syndicale, instilling in him the hand-moulded sensibility that marks out his work today. “They all worked very 3D from day one. It all started with textiles and draping,” he says. “When I was at Givenchy, for example, we never did any flat patterns. We draped straight on the mannequin, and created the patterns from there.”
