Name: Jivika Biervliet
City: Arnhem, the Netherlands
Work: Men’s fashion designer
School: Graduated in 2010 at the University of Arts in Utrecht (Fashion Communication)
Edited by Liselotte Fleur
How did you get interested in becoming a fashion designer?
Actually it came into my life by accident. After high school I had no idea what I wanted to do, it was then that I first heard of an art academy. Very intuitive, I decided to sign up for the fashion design programe, since I thought that was the closest to me, while I had no skills and no idea what I could expect there. Once I started with my study I started to realize more and more that I didn’t want to do anything else than that. Fashion I find especially interesting because you can create your own world and express your feelings through your designs . And because I can put my feelings in it. My designs are a reflection of myself and vice versa. After my study I became particularly attracted to designing men’s fashion because there seems to be more rules about what is allowed and what isn’t. Which makes it more challenging for me to look for boundaries and limitations. In my vision there is no need anyway to differentiate between children’s, women’s, and men’s fashion from each other.
She will describe her style of fashion as experimental, conceptual and wearable.
Jivika gets inspiration for her clothes from Characters of people, her own thoughts, misinterpretations, toys, kids and memories. “Anywhere actually. It’s the way that I look to the world, that I visualize in my collection.”
What goes through your mind when you design a collection?
What does my fictional man want which I make the designs for? How can I help him to make him to feel good and express his identity?
What was your latest collection and what was the concept behind the collection?
The title of my lastest collection which was recently showed at the Amsterdam fashion week is called ‘Forever Young’, it’s about the child inside of all of us. That will life on forever. The concept originated from the idea that when we are young we do everything as quickly as possible to grow up, and as we are mature we are again longing for our childhood where fantasy, dreams and play were central part of our being. As a child we are in our purest form, it would be unfair to ourselves if we lose it all. I see becoming adult also not as an obligation but a choice. The collection is a visualization of the beauty of youth where we can be who ever we want to be.
In the collection she used white as main color as a symbol of the blank slate, and all the possibilities out there in youth, huggable materials, and for example a sweater with an extra long sleeve that functions as a skipping rope and she combined this with playful styling elements.
Her clothes are made for open-minded men who are open to experiment with fashion.
What is your favorite design and why?
That’s hard to say… I don’t have a favorite design actually. Each design strengthened the other. It is a story I tell through the collection.
What are you working on now?
I’m figuring out what the next steps will be, what opportunities there are with this collection and I will start working on my next collection very soon.
How do you see yourself in the ‘fashion world’?
Forever young!
What can we expect to see from you in the future?
I’ll definitely continue with designing menswear and I hope I can continue to grow.
Pictures made by Peter Stigter during the AMSTERDAM FASHION WEEK FW12/13
