Marco Zwick 'Matchy Matchy – Dogs and Owners'
Marco Zwick is currently studying fashion design at the Academy of Art & Design Basel – Doing Fashion. After completing a three-year apprenticeship at St. Gallen in Switzerland, he interned with J. W. Anderson in London. Marco was picked to showcase his work in the CH-Talents: Visionaries exhibition to represent Doing Fashion. The display is currently taking place during LFW and is part of the 2015 International Fashion Showcase.
Marco, your designs feel very androgynous – is that effect intended?
I’m always affected by male fashion. In my graduate collection the inspiration comes from owners of attack dogs. It was very important to me that one doesn’t associate my design with cute puppies.
What is it about androgyny that catches your interest?
I’ve interned at J.W.Anderson where I saw how shapes and details of a men’s collection influence a women’s collection, and the other way round. For me that’s one reason why their designs are highly interesting.
Your garments seem to drape and flow – what is the main inspiration behind them?
At my school we work quite conceptually. For each collection I choose a topic and create a world around it. The inspirations are always different. Once I was inspired by the reputation of first ladies, the dress codes of orthodox Jewish women, and for the latest collection it was dogs and their owners.
Why is your work often displayed alongside pieces of art?
If you put two pictures next to each other, they start to interact with each other. When I put a picture next to my work, it starts to explain my thoughts.
Doing Fashion’s central focus is the development of a personal approach. How have you been developing yours?
While working on different projects, you see what you’re good at and how you stand out from others. For me the most enjoyable part is to stage the finished collection.
Basel is not known as a major fashion capital – what traits or attributes does it have to offer that differ from London, New York, Paris or Milan?
Basel is not far from Milan, Berlin and London and it’s actually very close to Paris so it’s very easy to travel to those places. However, the main reason I chose to study in Basel was the wide range of subjects they offer at Doing Fashion. People say that when you graduate in fashion design at Basel, you’re also a tailor, a photographer, a graphic designer, an interior designer or even a film producer.
How has living in Basel shaped your growth as a person and designer in the fast-paced fashion industry?
As it takes a while to see the changes of the fast-paced fashion industry in Basel, you’re less affected by what other designers do. I think that’s a blessing, because in today’s web-connected world you can choose what you want to see and to what extent you want to be a part of, or influenced by the fashion industry.
Why did you choose to study fashion?
I was always interested in fashion, but after school I wanted to become a graphic designer. When I talked to my friend’s mother about what my plans were, she told me that I should do an apprenticeship as a tailor and then study fashion. This was the best advice anyone has ever given to me.
Doing Fashion encourages designers to break away from conventional images of beauty. How would you define beauty?
For me beauty is the combination of qualities that gives pleasure to the mind. You could say that this is still a conventional definition of beauty, but it’s my definition of quality that breaks away from conventional images.
Still or sparkling?
I like it still.
Interview: Misha Skelly
CH Talents: Visionaries
Emerging Swiss Fashion Design
20-24 February 2015
Display Gallery
26 Holborn Viaduct
London
EC1A 2AT
