Iris van Herpen ~ ’Transmotion’ Short Film

Iris van Herpen unveils the ‘Transmotion’ dress and the eponymous short film, featuring mesmeric muse and on-screen maven Carice van Houten. Like most, the start of 2020 has seen Iris van Herpen operating closer to home. Paying homage to the brand’s Dutch roots, the homegrown actress serves as both inspiration and collaborator, starring in the film by Ryan McDaniels, that references the illusionary style of Dutch graphic artist Maurits Cornelis Escher. The term transmotion not only depicts the process of change from one state, form, style or place to another, it is also the visionary perceptions of the seasons and the visual scenes of motion in art and literature. In parallel to Iris van Herpen’s drive to visualise the invisible, her quest to question reality and urge to explore the realms of impossibility, the project aims to narrate the process that ushers change, to materialise an unconscious state of meditation. The ‘Transmotion’ dress radiates in a diaphanous bloom of white silk organza, translucent layers pleated within the confines of an undulating form, tracing the fluid outline of the creation. Contrasted against the frailty of sheer petals, black branches of duchess satin were laser-cut, hand-stitched and form the central roots of the garment. Threads of inspiration for the graphic yet organic extensions derive from the intricate art of Ruth Asawa. This geometric lattice recalls humankind’s inclination to tame nature. Beneath the surface, the branching also reveals the synonymity of mycorrhizal networks (the Wood Wide Web) and the symbiotic nature within human communities. Like fronds frozen in time, crystalline filaments sprout from the heart of the dress. Portraying delicate new life, black seed-like crystals punctuate the tip of each stamen-like strand. The concept of the creation stems from the notion of growth and regeneration. The seemingly simple seed is the embodiment of life and the potential that comes with it. A seed embedded upside down in dirt still sees the seedling growing the right way up. The dress follows symmetry in both its axis and without context, indiscernible which way is up or down. Motion and fluidity involved in the formation of tessellations highlight the capacity to shift between negatives and positives. Amidst an era when polarising ideologies are heightened, the work reflects upon the nature of perception. Credits Featuring: Carice van Houten Director: Ryan McDaniels Sound Design: Salvador Breed Including tracks: ‘F Major’ by Hania Rani — Gondwana Records Art Direction: Eugene Yeap | Ryan McDaniels Casting: Tobias Heinrichs Talent: Rebekka Beate Groeneveld Hair & Make-up: Emmy Klomp — EE Agency Hair & Make-up Assistant: Iris Zuidema Production: Ryan McDaniels | Tobias Heinrichs | Valentine Bouquet Director of Photography: Victor Horstink Steadicam Operator: Erwan van Buuren Focus Puller: Nina Da Costa Gaffer: Teun Pulles Editor: Ryan McDaniels Color Grading: Ryan McDaniels Photography: Valentine Bouquet Behind The Scenes Videography: Joost Konings Literature: Iris van Herpen | Eugene Yeap | Tobias Heinrichs Illustrations Artwork: Nastya Kuzmina Location: Conservatorium Hotel Amsterdam SPECIAL THANKS TO Fédération de la Haute Couture et de la Mode Davy Hezemans & Joanna van der Werf | Spice PR Zuiderling Agency | Roy Schellekens Nina van het Spijker & Robert Lee | Conservatorium Hotel Janey van Ierland | nummer19 Management