Through the years it seems that Belgium has continued to produce one creative force after another, from models such as Anne Catherine Lacroix to Tanga, or Willy Vanderperre + Olivier Rizzo to Serge Leblon, and designers like Dries Van Noten and the list goes on... You are one of the major contributors of fashion out of Belgium and now based out of Citizen K...what do you think it is about that country that breeds such creative talent?
Belgian culture is really specific. we have this mix of northern and southern influence in our culture. That means that in the fashion we have this subtile différence by mixing a real English, dutch even german influence in a classical more parisian élégance.
Concept and second degree is also a big part of our culture, main belgian stylists and designers bring concept and arty influence in their work and also touch of humor, i think that makes the différence and charm of their work.
Belgian models have all great personalities, from tanga to élise, anne Catherine, hannelore, roos to name a few. all these girls really involve themselves in the pictures. they're not just modelling but really try to understand the fashion and the stories. they often make choices of working with particular people. they really have a clever view of their part in the business.
Of course, girls like Tanga brought in the nineties a really new vision of beauty also. The cinematic, intimist view of Serge Leblon or Willy Vanderperre, and the really precise and so clever interprétation of fashion of Olivier RIzzo brought a really belgian touch in editorials worldwide, as much as the designers did when they arrived in the nineties with their unique interprétation of japanese influence mix with European ones.
Has fashion always been something that you were interested in or did you fall into it through some random sequence of events that brought you to this position as some do?
I've always been interested in fashion. when i was very young, Vogue and Marie Claire were my great escapes. i've really been obsessed by fashion image, editorials more than designing clothes, so i've logically do a fashion school (la cambre in Brussels) after my studies, i began to work as assistant at citizen k right after.
I think that the major motivation behind different stylists varies, some find the clothes are the most important aspect, others it's the model and how she's styled, and for some it's the whole frame or art direction of the image...what is your main focus when working on your season/stories for Citizen?
All the image is really important but as stylist. we have this « mission » to give new ideas or unique interprétation of fashion.
Personally, the catwalk is a first view of the designer, our mission is to understand this fashion and than go further on interprétation, not only about putting the main outfits on the right context and with the right casting but also to interprate totally the fashion, have a real concept, idea and personnality behind all these.
This is the most difficult part of the job finding how to interprate the fashion but being avant garde, elegant and clever.
Most of the magazines sometimes only inspire themselves from the shows, i think that's the first step of the process, unfortunately fashionbusiness is really about being bored by everything very quick so we have to give fresh ideas throughout the season.
Casting is a main part of the editorials of course and really is as important as the fashion in the image, that often makes the difference.
Do you see yourself staying in Europe or is there any American publication that you would be interested in working for in the future?
I love the american way of seing fashion. there's this real eternal élégance, of course vogue and w are my favourites, vogue for this really perfect vision of elegance and w for its avant garde and humoristic view of fashion.
V mag is also really fun for its energy and point of view.
I think it's only normal to have a favorite in your own field, every photographer seems to know who they have been the most obsessed with from now or times past, who is the stylist that you've always held high up on that pedestal through your years in the business?
I've grown with all these late eighties early nineties élégance. my favourites stay those incredible chic editors such as Manuela Pavesi, Anna Della Russo, Carlyne Cerf De Dudzeele, joe Mc Kenna who really influence my work everyday.
I love also the unique style of people such as Katie Grand, Marie Amelie Sauve, Carine Roitfeld, Olivier Rizzo, Venetia Scott, Melanie Ward for what they brought into fashion.
I think that with these changing times in our business ,we are about to see the emerging new big stylists .
I've always wished that someone would do a story inspired by the movie Tank girl, what is the one concept, storyboard you've always wanted to shoot and not yet shot?
There are really so much movies, videoclips, soap operas the list would be to long...For now, i'm a bit obsessed by truth in pictures, and truth in general.
