Inside the atelier ~ ‘Meta Morphism’

Inside the Atelier ~ Meta Morphism collection Zooming into the story, the innovation and the craftsmanship that the passionate team has created over the last 6 months. Special thanks to our atelier team, Klarenbeek & Dros and Casey Curran. Holding a lens to our intangible identities and shifting society with posthumanism and hyperreality at the horizon, this collection explores the depths of the body in future realities. The leitmotif of van Herpen’s history expresses the body in a state of permanent flux, metamorphosing with the milieu, and while the Maison is regarded for its futuristic approach, this season the designer reflects on Ovid’s Magnus opus poem ‘Metamorphoses’, written around the 8th century. At the time of Ovid’s writing, the act of metamorphosis was appreciated in relation to humanity and its place amongst nature, yet Ovid’s retelling exists relevant today, navigating the ramifications of technology that is constantly complicating the definition of identity. With the ability to recreate our digital twins, the space of soul-searching, losing a sense of self, and finding new realities, are life lessons.  With the new realms of our digital lives expanding, we are faced with an eternally rhetorical question: who are we beyond our physical bodies? Is the digital you shaping your pre-existing compass? Through ’Meta Morphism’, Van Herpen expresses the body as an elusive system, rooted in transcience, and speaks to a greater message of introspection. ~ Film by Jip Mus Music Direction by Salvador Breed Music Composition by Ayrton Speet and Johnny Paradiso