BIOGRAPHIES PARTICIPATING DESIGNERS AND ARTISTS

Angelos Bratis, Bas Kosters, Daryl van Wouw, Esther Loonen, Fleur van Maarschalkerwaart, Freudenthal/ Verhagen, G+N fashionfugitive, Jan Taminiau, JOFF, Joline Jolink, Mada van Gaans, Martine van 't Hul, Mary-Lou Berkulin, Melanie Rozema, Michel Mallard, Miss Liz Wendelbo, Oscar Suleyman, Paul Graves, Paul Staartjes, Percy Irausquin, Peter Jeroense, Piet Paris, Roswitha van Rijn, Sabrina Bongiovanni, Stijn & Marie, Victor de Bie, Viviane Sassen, Wendelien Daan, Wiglius de Bie

Angelos Bratis

Dutch-trained fashion designer Angelos Bratis graduated from the Fashion Institute Arnhem in 2002. Bratis chose this study to refine his style with the profundity of the FIA course, mixing nostalgic elegance with 'northern' influences, which results in an edgy, modern style. Bratis sells his designs in various stores in Greece. Since graduating he has created four prêt-a-porter collections for his own label. Bratis prefers his fabrics to be authentic: "I love old things. Modern things are so cold. I need things that have 'lived'". He uses silk fabric, rough cotton canvas, vintage trimmings, lace, chiffon and handmade details with cotton embroidery. With asymmetrical and circle cuts, voile and prints, he creates his collections for women who 'desire to be desired'.

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Bas Kosters

Bas Kosters could be called an all-round-designer more than just a fashion designer. Still, it was his fashion collection 'Two teacups and a frying pan', which he designed as a graduation collection for the Fashion Institute Arnhem, that made him win the acclaimed Dutch Robijn Fashion Award, and gained him international success. His refreshing clothing designs, his bags and his doll designs caused a national hype, followed by many interviews and fashion editorials in magazines. His work was also shown in the trendy department store Colette in Paris. Bas Kosters main focus point in his designs is recycling. Returning themes are applications and fabric designs. His style is so recognizable and applicable, that Bas is also intensely working on creating accessories, drawings and paintings, which caught the eye of Dutch design company Bugaboo, who asked him to paint his designs on a limited edition baby-stroller. Even when he's not designing or creating, he is always the centre of attention at events and parties, where together with his friends and (b)assistants, he will make the crowd go wild during inventive music performances.
[ www.baskosters.com ]

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Daryl van Wouw

Before graduating from the master course Fashion Institute Arnhem (FIA) last January, Daryl van Wouw studied at the Arnhem Academy for Art and Design. His first collection 'Sport-à-porter' combined his two passions; couture and sport. Each outfit referred literally to games such as basketball, American football and baseball. With this collection Van Wouw participated in the Dutch Robijn Fashion Award. During his studies Van Wouw got the opportunity to do an internship with Dutch couture designer Mart Visser, who showed him all the ins and outs of pattern drawing, sewing and fashion design. Van Wouw left Arnhem for New York where he did an internship at Donna Karan, focussing on fashion and prints design. As a freelance designer, Van Wouw worked for brands such as Converse, Swatch and Nissan. His FIA-graduation collection 'Ghetto Couture' brings an eclectic mix of street and high fashion designs. Van Wouw strives to dress women fashionable yet comfortable at all occasions and times. Van Wouw's style suits the independent cosmopolitan woman who identifies herself with the words; streetwise, successful, melting pot and couture.
[ www.darylvanwouw.com ]

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Esther Loonen

Esther Loonen studied fashion design at Arnhem Academy of Art and Design where she graduated in 2000. The same year she started working for the Dutch designer couple Oscar Suleyman, combining this with a master course at the Fashion Institute Arnhem. Loonen has always been drawn by the abroad, which first accumulated in an internship at Maria Cornejo's Zero in New York during her studies. After her graduation from her masters she decided to gain more international working experience in Paris, a city for which she had always felt a strong affection. She has been in Paris for three years and amongst others her last working experience has been for Isabel Marant, where she assisted on the collections and worked on the accessories. Painting is something Loonen has always practiced and stimulated by Paris' aesthetics and atmosphere it took a more profound form. Her works are directly connected and influenced by her regard as a designer and show a search and love for aesthetics, fashion and image making. In the series BIRDS she mixes several techniques, whether the use of the computer to maintain a strong photographic character, or different painting techniques and materials such as ink and oil on canvas.

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Fleur van Maarschalkerwaart

Fleur started working as a graphic designer after her MA Interactive Multimedia 1999. The first few years she worked primarily for design companies. Two years ago she decided to focus on her art and began as a freelancer. Fleur is fascinated by the contradiction of craft versus modern technology. In her work she combines the hand-made (drawn) feeling with a computer related look in order to create a separate layer of meaning. The result embodies a sense of finished yet unfinished, emotional and sensitive yet dead. She draws on imagery from the 'fashion industry', namely the 'iconic' portraits and poses which seduce us. However by separating these from their original contexts, and subjecting them to a "tender touch" they acquire a different meaning. At Dutch Touch, artwork of the collaboration with Martine van 't Hul, who¹s passion lies in fabrics and embroideries, will be shown.
[ www.fleurvanmaarschalkerwaart.com ]

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Freudenthal/Verhagen

Carmen Freudenthal and Elle Verhagen both studied at the Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam, graduating respectively as photographer and fashion designer. From 1998 they worked together expressing themselves through art projects. It is only later that they became involved in fashion and began to experiment with fashion and art. Freudenthal and Verhagen accept the disciplines of art and fashion for what they are and experiments freely with them; always searching for ways to surpass themselves. The strength to continue determining what they themselves believe in, without surrendering to the dictates of the fashion or art bastions, lies in the pleasure their work affords them. Freudenthal/Verhagen's work is fast pace, free of convention and essentially anti-authoritarian. With their photographs full of non verbal information, they effortlessly transcend the conventions of established photography. Their commitment is pure and devoid of pretensions - they spare no one, least of all themselves. Work by Carmen Freudenthal and Elle Verhagen has been published in Dazed & Confused, Jalouse, Studio Voice, High Fashion, Visionaire, I-D, Self Service and N°B. They participated in several exhibitions in Europe, the United States and Japan.
[ www.freudenthalverhagen.com ]

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G+N fashionfugitive

G+N fashionfugitive, made up of the duo Gerrit Uittenbogaard and Natasja Martens, started out in 1999. After his graduation, Uittenbogaard went on to earn a master degree at the Fashion Institute Arnhem where he was among the first group to complete the newly set up training course. Martens designed the accessories for Uittenbogaards FIA final exam show. G+N fashionfugitive's clothes are just as sharp and graphic as the plus symbol in their logo. Even though their clothes on occasions include strange physical elements and sometimes have an unnatural silhouette, they're not alienating. The staccato play of lines and razor sharp folds, reminiscent of origami, could be an explanation for G+N fashionfugitive's popularity in Japan. Uittenbogaard, while still at the academy, decided to do away with dress patterns and so laid the basis for G+N fashionfugitve's unique signature style. Lack of theoretical background prompted an innovative and unorthodox way of working. The investigative and intuitive character of moulage also plays an important role in G+N fashionfugitive's design process. Fashionfugitive, the G+N fashionfugitive internet site that went on line in 2000, was significantly named - a hint of self-mockery aimed at putting the fashion world into perspective. Similarly G+N caused a sensation with a wrist accessory inspired by a pincushion.
[ www.fashionfugitive.com ]

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Jan Taminiau

Fashion designer Jan Taminiau comes from a family tradition of antique dealers, decorators and interior designers. This formed the foundation for his passion for traditional production techniques, antique materials, the search for the right shape and form and the penchant for aesthetics. His work has a refined, conceptual undertone yet never loses sight of the elegant, feminine and wearable form. Taminiau graduated from the master course Fashion Institute Arnhem, and after a work placement at Hubert Barrere he started his own couture label, and now also runs a made-to-measure line. During Dutch Touch New York Taminiau presents his summer 2006 collection ‘Equilibre’. The fragility of the budding of a flower, the metamorphosis of a caterpillar into a butterfly, the dawning of a new day and drops of dew on a leaf, provide the moments of inspiration in which Jan Taminiau shrugs off the hard reality of everyday life. Fragility and transparency in lively colors, executed in sumptuous materials and an equally sumptuous finishing are the hallmarks of this collection. ‘Equilibre’ is feminine and bears the mystique of yesteryear in the era of now.
[ www.jantaminiau.com ]

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JOFF

One eyebrow raised: 'hi my name is Joffrey'. One eyebrow down: 'hi my name is JOFF', was the opening line of his introduction for the Festival International des Arts de la Mode in Hyreres, 2002. JOFF is the alter ego, the 'brand' of Joffrey Moolhuizen, created in 2001 when he graduated from the Rietveld Acedemie in Amsterdam. After graduating from the Fashion Institute Arnhem in 2002, JOFF decided for a rather unconventional approach. Instead of concentrating on the fashion system, that forces young designers to make a new collection each season, he chose to establish his label through the art circuit. However, in terms of design JOFF's work is made from a fashion perspective. The designer is intrigued by the dividing line between femininity and masculinity. His signature style could therefore be typified by its androgynous character. JOFF works for the renowned label Mansharey and was part of the artistic team behind the Arnhem Fashion Biennale held in June 2005. During Dutch Touch New York, JOFF will perform together with Grizzly Bear (music), Elissa Santiago and Voin de Voin (choreography) in the fashion performance Ofoffjoff.

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Joline Jolink

Joline Jolink graduated from the master course Fashion Institute Arnhem (FIA) last January, after studying at the fashion department of the Arnhem Academy of Art and Design. While still at the academy, Jolink worked as freelance designer for several fashion brands and as an assistant designer for Viktor&Rolf. Last March Jolink participated in the Paris-based project ANARCHY, where the graduated FIA-designers presented themselves and their collections in an anarchistic way to the international public during the prêt-a-porter-week. Jolink gained much attention with her collection 'Housewife with an eye for style' which she presented outside the fashion show of Céline, treating the fashion crowd on a poetic, winter scenery in the snow. For 'Houswife with a sense of style' Jolink's inspiration was the 40's, all American designer Claire McCardell. Like McCardell once said: "Women don't want their clothes to look like overalls, but they want them to act like overalls", Jolink also strives to create comfort in her designs. Comfort, but also sensuality, by using high quality wool, silk fabrics and feminine silhouettes. By the use of metal hooks, topstitching in denim and a lot of pockets, the practicality in her designs shows. Jolink's style is by its simplicity and graphical touch surprisingly modern.
[ www.jolinejolink.com ]

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Mada van Gaans

Mada van Gaans graduated from the Fashion Institute Arnhem (FIA) in 2004 after studying at the AMFI Academy. During her studies she did internships at Bernard Wilhelm, Oscar Suleyman, Beachlife, and worked on a freelance basis at a forecast agency. As a student of the 5th generation of the FIA, she presented her collection during an exhibition in Institut Neérlandais and a catwalk show in Paris. Her main sources of inspiration are myths and sages, comic stories and animals. Mada usually builds her collection around a story, consisting of different characters. Her designs are sensual, fluid, feminine, strong, detailed and they often contain a playful note. Mada aims to sell her designs in a selection of stores within the Netherlands and abroad. She frequently works on commissions for companies and brands, such as the mini collection she created in collaboration with Lavazza, which was photographed by acclaimed Dutch photographer Erwin Olaf and used for a calendar that is part of Lavazza’s international advertising campaign for 2005. Last July Mada presented her second prêt-a-porter collection "Amber's Tale, Chaper 2: The Chant" with a catwalk show during the Amsterdam International Fashion Week, and will also show this collection in New York during Dutch Touch.
[ www.madavangaans.com ]

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Martine van ’t Hul

After her MA graduation at the Fashion Institute in The Netherlands in 2002, Martine started working in Milan for fashion designer Ronald van der Kemp. After a year she began as a freelance designer and found herself working for different companies like Larus Miani, a big Italian fabric company. Working as a freelancer enabled Martine to make her own work the focal point. Martine's specialty and passion lies in fabrics and embroideries. She loves to design embroideries, and plays with the idea of handmade versus production techniques. Her first collection in 2000 was called Mi-Confectioné, a term that was introduced at the beginning of the 20th century, which means 'half-produced'. The idea behind this was that as a designer you deliver a half produced product: as the wearer has an influence on the design as well. This concept has become a part of her signature as she still likes to play with the thought that something remains; forgotten and unsaid. At Dutch Touch, Martine van 't Hul shows artwork of the collaboration with artist Fleur van Maarschalkerwaart.

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Mary-Lou Berkulin

Mary-Lou Berkulin studied at the Arnhem Academy of Art and Design before she graduated from the master course Fashion Institute Arnhem (FIA) in January 2005. She presented her collection 'Turmoil' during the FIA-graduation show at the Amsterdam International Fashion Week. In March, Berkulin's anarchy statement during the FIA-graduation project ANARCHY caused quit a stir; just as the name of her collection 'Turmoil' states. Her presentation at the prêt-a-porter week in Paris seemed like a protest with a lot of banners and signs, which scared the authorities present at the show of Ann Demeulemeester. But when it turned out that Berkulin was simply there to draw attention to her collection, she got the whole crowd going with her fashion-march. During her studies Berkulin worked a dresser for several Victor & Rolf-fashion shows in Paris. She gained experience as a designer by working as an assistant for Dutch fashion designers Spijkers & Spijkers and Mada van Gaans.

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Melanie Rozema

During the New York Fashion Week Melanie Rozema will present new designs from her label MR. Rozema has presented six collections together with Jeroen Teunissen under their collective label Rozema Teunissen, which was dissolved in 2001. Rozema Teunissen created two prêt-a-porter collections a year, which they presented in Paris and Osaka on several occasions. In 2002, Rozema and Teunissen were awarded the New York Dance and Performance Award (also known as Bessie) for the costumes they designed for the New York based dance company David Parker & The Bang Group. Melanie Rozema teaches at the Royal Academy for the Arts in The Hague and at the Fashion Institute Arnhem. At the moment she is working on a small series of womenswear and on several freelance projects and collaborations.

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Michel Mallard

During the past ten years, creative director, curator and photographer Michel Mallard has taken command of magazines such as L'Autre Journal, Biba, Colors, Jalouse, Marie Claire Japon, Blast, L'Officiel, and Vogue Hommes Intérnational. He has also art directed photography books. Since 1998, Michel Mallard curates the photography exhibitions and the contest of young photography for the Festival de Mode et de Photographie à Hyères, numerous shows that have afterwards been hosted by the Musée d’Art Moderne Grand-Duc Jean in Luxembourg, the Centre National de la Photographie in Paris, The Photographers’ Gallery in London and Unit-F in Vienna. For Dutch Touch Mallard was guest curator for the photography project ZOOM and photographed ‘three muses’ in dresses of Angelos Bratis and Percy Irausquin. These images where printed on 5 by 8 meters of canvas, covering the width of the façade of the prestigious, historical, fashion museum Galliera for the first time. Inside the museum an historical exhibition was displayed, outside a contemporary emotive statement was given to the Parisian public space when the sculptures of the Three Muses traded their stone tunics for Dutch fashion.

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Miss Liz Wendelbo

Photographer Elizabeth Wendelbo, better known as Miss Liz Wendelbo, was born is Oslo, Norway in 1968. After graduating from a BA-course in Theater and Film at the Bristol University in 1991 she studied Media Art at the AKI Academy for Art and Design in the Netherlands. Her photos are published by international fashion and art magazines, such as Purple, V, Officiel, Surface, The New York Times, D, Capricious, Famous and Livraison. Recently her video works have been shown in New York at Foundation 20 21 in January 2005, curated by Tim Nye and Miguel Abreu, and in May 2005 at Gallery W139 in Amsterdam. Wendelbo has also participated in selected group shows such as ‘There’s a city in my mind’ in New York, ‘Lethal Fashion’ and ‘Landed’ in Antwerp and ‘Millennium of Fashion’ in the Museum of Fashion in Kobe, Japan. Miss Liz now lives and works in New York as a video artist and a photographer. Together with the Dutch design duo Gerrit Uittenbogaard and Natsja Martens of G+N fashionfugitive she will present the exhibition ‘Hermetica’ during Dutch Touch New York from September 15th till September 21st 2005 at the Up & Co Gallery in New York City.

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Oscar Suleyman

Behind the label Oscar Suleyman you find fashion designers Oscar Raaijmakers and Süleyman Demir. Both worked as interns at Vivienne Westwood in London and after graduating from fashion academy they worked at different couture houses in Paris, as Veronique Leroy and Dice Kayek. In 1997 Oscar and Süleyman returned to the Netherlands to establish their own label. In that same year they produced their debut collection 'Only for those who can find balance on a pair of high heels'. Like the title indicates, Oscar Suleyman's style focuses on classy, sophisticated women. Oscar Suleyman sells in leading boutiques and department stores in Paris, London, Milan, Rome, Berlin, Hong Kong and Tokyo. Apart from designing their own collections, Oscar and Süleyman work on a freelance basis. They designed costumes for a couple of theatre and dance productions. Oscar regularly teaches at the Fashion Department of the Arnhem Academy of Art and Design and the Fashion Institute Arnhem. Süleyman works as a coordinator at the Fashion Institute Arnhem. Together they work for the Dutch brand Oilily, where for a year now they have been responsible for the designs of the womenswear-collection.

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Paul Graves

Photographer Paul Graves lives and works in New York and Berlin. He was born in 1969 and he studied art in Vienna in the 90's. He directed music videos and commercials from 92' to 96'. He also worked with Bela Borsodi as a photo team from 2002 to 2005. His work has been published in magazine from Another magazine to British Vogue and all sorts of places in between. Graves is currently working on a future book project and solo work.

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Percy Irausquin

Percy Irausquin was born on Aruba and after high school moved to the Netherlands for an education in fashion design at the Gerrit Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam. After his graduation he continued his fashion course at the Fashion Institute Arnhem in 2001. That same year he was nominated for the Robijn Fashion Award and his love for couture made him win the Frans Molenaar Couture award. After graduating from the Fashion Institute Arnhem he worked at the couture house of Christian Lacroix and for famous corset maker Hubèrt Barrère. During his first New York presentation he will present his new collection ‘Belle de Jour’, a mix of couture and prêt-a-porter. Inspired by the cinema classic ‘Belle de jour’, featuring Catherine Deneuve in the leading role as the fashionable lady by day and sexy call-girl by night, Irausquin renders a sophisticated female silhouette for the IT girl of today. Irausquins style is above all feminine. He detests difficult concepts and his leading aim is to make women beautiful, while spreading his motto: 'don't excuse yourself for being glamorous, always overdress whatever the occasion'.

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Peter Jeroense

Fashion illustrator Peter Jeroense (Rotterdam, 1966) started his career as a fashion designer. He graduated with honors in fashion design and fashion illustration from the Willem de Kooning Academy of Modern Arts. From 1988 he founded and has designed ell=bell, has worked as freelance print designer and was fashion editor for Blvd. magazine. In 1999 he started to deal with the obsession of the "new" within the fashion system as an illustrator. His cut&paste technique blends drawings in pen and ink with parts of photocopied pictures. His signature black and white illustrations have been published in Blvd., Boiler, Carlos, Flaunt, Nylon and Selfridges Tribune. For his advertising campaign for Sigerson Morrison the black and white was supplemented by primary colors red yellow and blue.
[ www.unit.nl ]

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Piet Paris

Pieter 't Hoen, better known as Piet Paris, is mostly known for his fashion illustrations, recognisable by their striking drawing style. Yet, 't Hoen is active in a lot of other fashionable activities. He is co-founder of the Fashion Institute Arnhem; a master course in fashion design. He also teaches about fashion illustration and 3-D design at several art academies. In 1988 't Hoen graduated in Fashion design and Fashion illustration from the fashion department of the Arnhem Academy of Art and Design. The fashion shows of Paris and Milan are the source of inspiration for this work. 't Hoen illustrates for newspapers and magazines in the Netherlands as well as Japan and England. His work has appeared in publications from Germany, Belgium, France and from the USA to Russia. Right now 't Hoen is creative director of the Arnhem Fashion Biennale 2005; the premier edition of an international, interdisciplinary happening for the fashion design world to be held every two years in the city of Arnhem. The premier edition of the Arnhem Fashion Biennale will bring national and international fashion designers, manufactures, distributors, fashion lovers and the general public together.
[ www.unit.nl ]

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Roswitha van Rijn

For shoe designer Roswitha van Rijn, the footwear is the most important item of an outfit; it can reveal the personality of the wearer and can either make or break an outfit. With traditional methods she creates shoes, boots and leg accessories after her own design. Inspired by the animal world and religious themes, Roswitha creates designs in which the theme, last, heel, material and manufacturing way are tuned in with one another, this way the strongest image can be attained. She works with a variety of materials. Besides different kinds of leather she uses fabric, lace, plastic, wood, glass, embroidery, beads and more. All designs distinguish themselves by their wearability and  fashionable aspect. In the near future Roswitha wants to explore different work opportunities such as commercial fashion and theater, eventually setting up her own label. Since 2004 Roswitha has been designing footwear for the collections of fashion designer Mada van Gaans. She is also working on her own collections and designs footwear for private clients of all sorts; man or women, age 0 to 90.

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Sabrina Bongiovanni

Photographer Sabrina Bongiovanni graduated from the Royal Academy for Visual Arts/Photography, the Hague, in 2002. She worked as an intern for photographers duo Freudenthal/Verhagen and was awarded the Erasmus Encouragement Prize in 2002. She lives and works in Amsterdam. In her work Sabrina Bongiovanni shows an artificial reproduced world. Her photographs contain real existing places but look like scenery’s that refer to something or somewhere else. These images show reality in a different way, focusing on environments and objects that most of the time go unnoticed or are taken for granted. For the project ‘IKEA WORLD’ she has taken furniture pieces from its ‘natural’ habitat and placed them in a environment in which the objects anticipate their intended purpose, or seek contact with a setting in which they feel at home in terms of form or color. Strange things happen when she turns her camera at people and their surrounding; shapes melt together and are performing on this bizarre but familiar stage. The images she made for the Ikea campaign are shown in New York at the ADC Gallery during the exhibition NIEUW Statements in Dutch Imagery.
[ www.sabrinabongiovanni.com ]
[ www.unit.nl ]

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Stijn & Marie

Stijn&Marie are the Dutch photographers duo Stijn Ghijsen and Marie-José Jongerius. At a young age, Marie started making photo-portraits of her girl friends and became intrigued by photography. She studied Italian and photography in Rome and moved back to Holland after being accepted at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts to study photography. After graduating she immediately was picked up by several magazines and she managed to set her own standard for portrait photography. Fascinated by images and how they can impact our world, Stijn started working for television. He worked his way up at a local television station and became a camera man. After a brief study in film and video he realized that it was the power of the single image he truly believed in. Between them Stijn&Marie worked, separate and together, for magazines, ad agencies and have had shows all over the world. After becoming a team they decided to pursue one of their mutual dreams and moved to Los Angeles; one of the most fascinating controversial places in the modern world, to explore their photography and work on their own projects as well as pursuing their careers on a global level. Their work was recently selected for the Hyères Festival's photography competition and has featured in its group show.

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Victor de Bie

Fashion artist Victor de Bie graduated in fashion design at the Gerrit Rietveld Academie in 2001. De Bie has always had an interest in fashion, but after doing internships at Niels Klavers and Roxanne Lowit, and gaining work experience at fashion shows in Paris, he decided to make a crossover to painting. The reason was that he noticed that he put most of his feelings into the design drawings he created. Everything in these drawings looked exactly the way he wanted and he could create his own world. De Bie developed his style by creating his drawings on canvas, and became an autodidact in painting. His sources of inspiration are the 80’s and especially Michael Jackson during his ‘Thriller’ period. Inspirations from the art world are people such as Magritte and Le Douanier Rousseau. His work is known for the distinctive use of bright colors and the fact that most characters from his paintings reflect a part of Victor himself, making it almost self-portraits. Victor is still working in fashion and is experimenting with creating portraits together with his brother Wiglius, who is a photographer. Both are participating at the exhibition Stretching Bounderies at the Diane von Furstenberg Gallery during Dutch Touch New York.

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Viviane Sassen

Viviane Sassen (1972) moves in diverse territories with her photographs. She exhibits her work in galleries and museums, but also works on commission. She did fashion spreads for So (Alexander van Slobbe) and Miu Miu (Prada). Photos that are not directly recognizable as fashion imagery, but that often have a clear connection with Sassen's free work. Another part of her work arises within an editorial framework for 'underground' magazines like Purple, Butt, Kutt and Re-magazine. Sassen makes use of various photographic styles. She uses a broad scale of possible options; internalized next to stylized poses, clearness but also unfocused ness, perfect color prints and extreme color interventions, total shots next to blow-ups of details.

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Wendelien Daan

People who see photographer Wendelien Daan's (1965) technically perfect, clean-cut images would not for a minute think she was autodidact. Daan graduated from Arnhem's Institute for the Art's fashion department and in her own words took a shortcut towards perfecting an overall image by photographing the collections of her fellow students. Daan moulds her pictures with the utmost precision and attention to detail, creating beautifully pure sculptural images in which her eye plays over the exterior planes that enclose the human form. Although figurative, her photos in their surface division, refer to the graphic clarity of Mondriaan while the intensities of light and dark that glide over the body are reminiscent of Vermeer. Daan captures a worldly image in a photo in the same way the naked eye registers beauty. Therefore no fuzzy outlines, background and foreground are equally sharply focussed. Daan's play on light and dark, her command of open and closed body language arrest the eye and emphasize female strength. Wendelien Daan has, among others, worked for Viktor & Rolf, Nike, MTV, l'Oreal, Mauboussin and Garnier. Her work has been published in books and magazines such as Jalouse, l'Officiel, The Face, Citizen K and French, Japanese and Russian VOGUE.
[ www.wendeliendaan.nl ]

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Wiglius de Bie

Photographer Wiglius de Bie graduated from the art academy St.Joost in Breda, the Netherlands. His style is natural and poetic. During his studies he did an internships at French Vogue in Paris, where he later worked as a freelance photographer. After graduating in 2000, De Bie went to Paris to do an internship at the office of Mario Testino and after that worked as an assistant of several photographers such as Eric Traoré and Roxanne Lowit. After two years De Bie started working independently as a fashion and portrait photographer and worked for Vogue, H&M magazine, Glamour, Madame Figaro and Dirk Bikkembergs. He has also spend some time in New York to work as an editor for a photo book of Roxanne Lowit. Since a couple of months, the Netherlands is his home base again for all his work activities. Together with his brother Victor he creates photography projects focused on portraits of friends and acquaintances. Their starting point is to experiment with a totally free way of working. Wiglius and Victor both participate in the Dutch Touch New York exhibition Stretching Boundaries in the Diane von Furstenberg Gallery.

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