Hussein Chalayan is a Turkish-born, British-based designer known around the world for his high concept shows and highbrow collections that teeter between intellectual and ostentatious.
Chalayan is the designer who pushes clothing design to the edge where they become part sculpture, furniture or, at times, architecture. While the majority of fashion designers are obsessed with glamour, Chalayan’s work is always conceptual and often times political. Each of his creations focuses on cultural or political themes, reflecting Chalayan’s own experience as someone whose identity is created by experiencing and living in different cultures. Even at first glance it is obvious that he draws inspiration from a wide range of different disciplines such as architecture, philosophy and anthropology.
He has twice been named British Designer of the Year for his use of unusual materials and untraditional techniques. While still in school at Central St. Martins College of Art and Design, he put on an eye-popping presentation of garments that had been buried in the ground to see how they would decompose that people are still talking about over ten years later.
Over the years he has continued to blur the line between art and fashion with pieces like a coffee table that turns out to be a wooden skirt, armchair covers which transform into dresses and chairs that double as suitcases, just to name a few. We are all sitting on the edge of our seats to see what he will do next.
