i-D Magazine 1 Jan 2002

To keep my poetry


The Dutch fashion designer Joff was one of the participants of the 17th annual Hyères Festival recently concluded in France.

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Fashiondesigner Joff -

With:

i-D Magazine asked him some questions:

Describe your work

My collection has been built out of many different layers. In a way, everything was all over the place and somehow in the end everything came together. I guess that's my way of working.

Biggest influence?

My work is quite conceptual. Poetry is one of my greatest influences.

What inspired your collection?

My collection was actually about sex and deals with three stages of that: the sexually suppressed (religion, uniforms), childlike sexuality (the naïve and perverse) and romance.

How do you view the fashion industry?

The fashion industry is somehow far away from what I feel, but there are many different ways of presenting fashion, if people are open enough for it. As a young designer it's your mission to open up things, which is not an easy task, even at a basic level (ie financially and organisationally).

What does it mean to be independent?

To keep my poetry.

joff in: i-D, the Independant Issue no. 222