by Lotus Ladegaard & Olivia Moreau
Leon Emanuel Blanck is a curious designer. Unlike most in his field he did not start off at the confines of a larger house rather he started off researching fur garments for men and sought out furriers to learn about and study the fur- and leather industry. He also developed a new way of designing and pattern-making which he calls "Anfactuous Distortion". While each piece is made pret-a-porter, the actual design process and approach is undoubtedly very haute couture. He rebels against all pattern making conventions and spends up to 70 hours on each pattern. The pret-a-porter industry as such has not evolved much in terms of pattern making, but Leon Emanuel Blanck offers a new refreshing approach and perspective that in many ways that rebel against the prevailing order. In many ways. He has his foot firmly grounded in commercial-slow -fashion that will appeal to the environmentally conscious, who still wants avant-garde and edgy clothes without the moral compromise.
All Leon Emanuel Blanck’s garments are created in a uniformed way. A cast is formed around the moving human body and thus yielding the prototype piece. The anatomy and movement of the body create natural seams, which are then adjusted to reveal the final garment. Every piece is initially a sculpture fitted perfectly to the human anatomy without paying attention to conventional seaming, that comes to life when worn. He has sculptured every garment asymmetrical just like the human body with our little imperfections. The result is a very wearable avant-garde collection with tons of editorial appeal.
Leon Emanuel Blanck’s collection is beautifully presented and certainly, makes you want to see more of every garment. The intricate seaming is interesting and intriguing to study. Not only is it placed unconventionally, but the actual stitching is also intricate and it almost feels like a study in stitching and seaming. Each seam is not necessarily alike, some are French, some resembles sutures and some are traditional, but used in an unconventional way.
Leon Emanuel Blanck stands out among the crop of current slow fashion designers because of his clear artistic vision and a strong ability to make that vision a reality. His Anfactuous Distortion design approach is both intellectually and technically aspiring.
Photographs Courtesy of Bureau Haiati
