Bernhard Willhelm

Bernhard Wilhelm was born in Ulma (Germany) in 1972. Now he is 38, and he is damn successful.

In 1998, the designer graduated from the Royal Academy of Antwerp. After Bernhard, I had a chance to work in such authoritative houses as Walter Van Beirendonck, Alexander McQueen, Vivienne Westwood and Dirk Bikkembergs.

The beginning of the brand Bernhard Willhelm (together with Jutt Kraus) was laid with a women's collection of clothing, which was presented to the public as part of Parisian shows in March 1999. In October 2000, the designer first began the creation of a male collection, the existence of which he kept secret until January 2003. It was then that this line, the fruit of three -year efforts, was shown it at the Male Fashion Week.

In September 2002, he moved to Paris. From 2002 to 2004, Bernhard successfully led the Italian house Capucci, while not forgetting about his own collections.

In 2003, the designer was honored to present a retrospective of his work as part of the Blickle Art Foundation project in Germany.

In 2005, the fashion designer took part in the development of the costume of the School Form nomination, which was organized by the Misericordia charitable company to help orphans. In the same year, its first shoe line was launched into production.

His successes did not go unnoticed. Bernhard received the ANMA Grand Prix as the most promising talent of a modern creative scene.

For those 11 years of them that the designer gave his brand, he managed to create and furnish his own truly stunning corner of the fashion world.

Creation

In an interview for Hint Magazine, the designer tells that at a young age he was affected by the work of Gauthier and Madonna. Today, the favorites of Bernhard - Raf Simons, Wendy & Jim, Haider Akkerman and Viktor & Rolf. It is impossible to disagree that these companies are worthy of being learning to conduct business.

The approach of Bernhard to the creation of clothing is distinguished by a certain share of avant -garde. He is a supporter of bold solutions for the form, combination of colors and used fabrics, but at the same time, the cut of products emerging from his hand is quite simple.

Already in his first collection, represented in Paris in 1999, he violated about eight million fashion rights using colors, volumes and topics that were at a dead end of critics who tried to classify what they saw. Skillfully placing various objects in the center of attention (from toys and computer games, to the elements of Tresh and American football players), Bernhard, it would seem, set the canvas of his work. But it wasn't there! It suddenly turns out that the new collection following multi-colored madness is inspired by the minimalism of the 90s.

In the 2006 summer male collection, Wilhelm more focuses on the concept of “Street, Fun and Chic”, where he demonstrates us his love of hypertrophied volumes, bright colors and amazing prints.

In his autumn-winter collection of 2008-2009, Bernhard collaborated with the English photographer Nick Knight (with whom he already dealt with the creation of the cover for the Album Björk-“Volta”).

Mykita & Bernhard Willhelm Limited Edition 2009 AW

In 2009, Bernhard Wilhelm to create a common project with Mykita, which are known for the line of their ultra-light and mirror glasses. The result of joint creativity was Aviator glasses. They were called Franz. It is in them that Sarah Jessica Parker appears on the set of a film of sex in the big city-2, in New York.

The name is given in honor of the legendary champion Franz Klammer. Their catchy, but at the same time ascetic design gives a conscious reference to the disadvantages of obsolete methods for the production of optics and glasses in particular.

Collection Spring/Summer 2010
All our expectations from the latest collection of Bernhard Wilhelm were justified, his signature style found full embodiment in it. Screaming design, extreme sewing and color to the whole coil - this is Bernhard Wilhelm.

To get to the show, the audience had to overcome the labyrinth of the Bronar Palace, after which they found themselves in a room with a high ceiling, caught by the molberts and piles of open books. The images of models were created using black wigs (two and at all with sculptures on their heads - these intricate constructions, only remotely resembling wigs, can not be called). There were masks of long stems of straw, which reached the knees, and real helmets. Not without the collection and without army bombers, bombers with animalistic prints, which were served in a suit with shorts, as well as yellow tog - the modern retelling of the Aztec tradition.

It is quite difficult to create a proper brightness of the collection in the Theast of the text, so just look at the video and photos.

S/S 2010

Interview for Hint Magazine

I want to know about you as a person, so tell me, please, about your childhood!
We had a greenhouse while I grew up. And I was completely absorbed and fascinated by the small world I created. Some of them lived in the water and ate plankton, others loved to enjoy insects. Even now, my mother sometimes calls me to tell how plants are doing there. What else? Toys. I did not like toys as a child as now. Toys are an extraordinary form of madness that is associated with my design. She has nothing to do with what is real. I am not worried about bodies or faces. Only fantasy. This is what I love, pure fantasy.

What thing could you consider crazy? I have to resort to exaggeration to get closer to the center of the idea. The most important thing in creating a collection is to conjure the idea extremely clearly. A fashionable audience reacts exclusively to very strong ideas, images. In one season, I was inspired by a trash culture and therefore created a collection based on figures from Happy Milov from McDonald's. I always had a feeling that I was locked in prison. Maybe that's why I always strive for something exotic.

How do you work? How is your design created?
Oh, it resembles chaos! We come up with an idea, and then we can leave it and grab it for something completely different. I never go to the design commercially, I do not think that I need, for example, five skirts in the next collection. As for beauty, it is not very important for me. Here we are talking about the adoption of strong ideas, and the subsequent producing of the picture. Beauty comes from emotions. And I am pleased with the result if he makes me feel something.

Your show is often very unusual. In the future, I want to pay more attention to them. Usually the whole concept is invented in the last minute. I want to plan everything to achieve a better result.

Tell us about your favorite fashion things.
I can highlight 5 basic things. I really like sweaty things. I love washed things. Good linen is of great importance! I love shoes. I also love very courageous things. This is the privilege to be a man. Today I am pursued by the feeling that we must wear skirts again.

And what kind of laundry do you wear?
Who, me? Well, in winter I am not averse to putting pants. It is very convenient, and with pants on top they also create the effect of stronger legs! I collect sexual things, but this is more likely to go out. Such underwear makes me feel different. I do not really like silk underwear, but I have nothing against dirty underwear.

Let's talk about bad Bernhard. I think I'm very annoying. And sometimes I like to be evil. I can be very cruel and bring people out. And the food is somehow very important for me. If I do not eat, then I feel bad. I spend a lot of time in the gym.

In general, what are you, assertive or malleable?
In fact, I'm lazy. If I had no work, I would not do anything. I need to force me to work. But due to the fact that I have been brought up on Protestant values, I just need work for self-determination. And if I do not work, then I feel guilty. I am sure that the most successful people are driven by constant fear of rushing and getting stuck in this state. He read that Bill Clinton could build relationships with the right people for twenty hours in a row, but when he was left alone in his office, and literally did nothing, he was depressed.

Who is your fashion hero?
When I was sixteen, Jean-Paul Gauthier was very impressive that he was his main theme of solid and abundant 80s. He made these corsets and played a role in the formation of Madonna. It's really great. I believe that the 90s are quite boring.

And which of the modern ones?
I do not think about who is better or no better. I see myself as part of a whole generation. I really appreciate what other people do, such as Raf Simons, Wendy & Jim, Haider Ackerman. At one time I really liked Viktor & Rolf. And Hyder studied with me in the same class. I am happy when he succeeds. Raf has a huge talent in the production of the show. I really admire them. If you can influence people through a show, it is simply incredible. Another style of Wendy & Jim, postmodern, like my own. There is nothing more beautiful and ugliness.

I know that this is a nightmare cliche, what kind of music do you love for?
I'm not very versed in music. Although I like to turn on the TV to watch MTV. I like to dance. And hang out. I love clubs - dance and sex clubs.

How do you get dressed?
I like to change, play with myself. If someone tells me that I found myself, I answer: "Nonsense!" The coolest in life is that it changes every day. The real "you" or "I" does not exist. Sometimes you need to let the deformity go out.

You do not believe that you can dress right and wrong?
No, no and no.

That is, you are never annoyed by how some people dress? Never. I'm not a critic. If people want to look the way they look, then this is good.

And from what point of view do you evaluate someone else's appearance?
I love when people make efforts to the right selection of clothes. And this happens so rarely. The only thing I do not like when clothes are used as a symbol of status. I do not buy things in order to look rich. I do not respect it. I am not interested in the power that can be carried out thanks to fashion. Fashion is too connected with status and money. For me, this is the wrong path. It kills creativity. It kills everything, even your personality.

You can get acquainted with the last collection in the Air store.