We met the duo at last year’s Off Schedule and we soon realized that…AND BEYOND are Holland’s best fashion export. Brigitte Hendrix andJolanda van den Broek take the industry a step further.
How did you meet and what made you decide to become a design duo? We met during our fashion education at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in Amsterdam and started working together after our graduation in 2005.
How did you come up with your 3D graphics on the textiles you use? Is illusion your main focus as an impression? By the use of Stereoscopy (3D) a sense of unease appears in the printdesigns. Viewing the work through the 3D glasses the fabric reveals hidden dimensions, vanitas symbolism appears in the designs… between the flowers. Our main focus was using the sense of unease rather than the illusion aspect of the technique.
Why do you make only one collection per year? Until recent our focus lies on showing our ideas through clothing, the shows and creating strong show collections. Not yet on sales of the pieces, so therefore we took our time to develop the work and not yet follow fashion seasons.
Where in Amsterdam is your atelier? Which area, and how inspiring is the area and the city in general for you? We are based in the center of Amsterdam, in the Red light district. Here we are part of the Red light fashion project. This is a project in which the City of Amsterdam decided to loan a part of the window area to the creative industries for a period of one year, guided by HTNK (a fashion recruitment & consultancy agency) we work in the midst of a selection of Dutch fashion designers. This area and the city is a very dynamic and inspiring environment for us.
What is the best soundtrack for your current collection? The Shangri-las: I can never go home anymore, the Cramps: Human fly, the Paradise island trio: Adventures in paradise.
Where can someone find your clothes? On our website: www.andbeyond.nl and in a small selection of shops in Amsterdam (Destination shop, Barrio and Code gallery store) and Arnhem (Coming Soon).
Do you feel any pressure in your work plan due to the present global financial crisis? No, we aim to continue our steady growth.
Do you consider your clothes expensive? No, we aim to sell them at prices in accordance with the market. And our sellable items vary of pieces within a wide price range.
On what project are you working on now? On our next collection which will be presented around June / July this year.
