What Can Fashion

Teach Us About Architecture?

Viktor Horsting and Rolf Snoeren, Viktor&Rolf, first came on the scene in the early 90s after, as amateurs and recent design school graduates, they took out all three prizes at the then Salon Européen des Jeunes Stylistes in Hyères, France. In the 23 years since, they’ve stayed relevant – and afloat – in the tumultuous fashion industry, a feat in itself. From October-February 2016/17 the National Gallery of Victoria (NGV), along with international guest curator Thierry-Maxime Loriot, held a spectacular exhibition showcasing some of the design duo’s most memorable moments.

Luck has had nothing to do with their long-standing success. An artistic vision and cutting-edge eye was only a part of the equation, as the two consistently prove that ebbing and flowing with the market is central to designing for what they saw was missing and in our current political climates. As other designers and fashion houses caught on and helped saturate one area – they quickly jumped to another. When you look at the history of their work, jumping backand-forth between fashion-cum-art installations, haute couture, ready-to-wear and around again, it’s immediately evident. As architects and designers we should read their approach as testimony that it’s not enough to be creative.

There are lots of creative people with agency out there – you need to be clever, responsive and forward-thinking, too.