Featured Designer_ Duran Lantink

Where are you based_ Amsterdam

Age_ 33

Where did you study_ 

Gerrit Rietveld Academie and the Sandberg Instituut in Amsterdam 

What year did you graduate_ 2017 

When did you first start employing the process of upcycling in your work_

While studying I found all these sale items on the internet and I started making collages from them, and then I thought: ‘OK, how can I make this a unique perspective in fashion? They said that a collage is a collage and a design needs to be made with completely new materials, which I strongly disagree with. I really didn’t give a fuck about what people were saying, because I think this is the new way forward.”” (Browns)

What materials do you use in your work_

At the beginning it was all about combining mixing all the big rivals together, putting Kering and LVMH together. It’s not the main core of what my practice is about, but I still love to do it. I love to play with those elements because it would be really hard for Kering and LVMH brands to collaborate themselves. We saw Balenciaga with Gucci do it, but they are in the same group, you wouldn’t see them making a collection with Louis Vuitton or Dior making a collection with Chanel very easily. This still makes it exciting to explore what you can do,” said the designer.” (WWD)

How does the process of upcycling inform your work_

The main thing that we were doing with the clothes was trying to dis-identify clothing pieces. It's basically trying to keep the first garment alive, but then constantly transforming it

What role does the process of upcycling play in the fashion industry today? What about in the future? How do you see the craft evolving_

You know, it was never about sustainability for me. It was just about finding a new way of designing. But it’s now become a labeling problem. Some people say I’m a designer, some say I’m a stylist, and others say I’m an artist. Now I’m an upcycler. But as long as I can do what I want to do, I don’t really care.

What’s up next for you_

One day I’d love to do a line of upcycled Chanel

— Duran Lantink is a Dutch designer who lives and works in Amsterdam. / @duranlantinkyo