V-ZUG Inspirations Magazine - Magazine - Page 26
THE THREAD OF BEAUTY
something that you love is actually true sustainability, and is
also less expensive than constantly replacing things.
Nowadays, sustainability is central to many design narratives. For Fischbacher 1819, how does it translate into
everyday practice and mindset? I personally visit all the
warehouses and factories we work with, because for us sustainability starts with people and long-term relationships.
Many of the companies we collaborate with have been partners for generations. Once, the owner of an Indian company
came to our house and was stunned to recognise the fabric
hanging in our living room: it was the first textile his company ever sold to Fischbacher – to my husband’s grandfather.
That kind of continuity and shared history is something we’re
deeply proud of. We also continue to collaborate with his company because he’s committed to creating jobs for women at
every level, and to their education. We believe in treating all
the people we work with well. Companies are sometimes wonderful to customers and then squeeze suppliers. To me, it’s all
about mutual respect and collaboration: working together to
achieve the best product at the best price.
What about research? Research means not only finding new
techniques, new looms, and new ways of producing textiles,
but also rediscovering what got lost. One of the fabrics we did
with Ramdane Touhami, for example, was woven by an Italian company that still uses a loom from the 1960s, a crochet
machine no longer in production – I think it’s the only existing
machine of that kind. The process is very slow, and it takes
forever to make this fabric. But we wanted a curtain that looks
like a big sweater, so we kept trying until we obtained exactly
what we wanted.
You speak to very different markets while remaining deeply
rooted in your heritage. How do you navigate this dialogue
between different cultures? Through authenticity. I am half
American, half Iranian, but I grew up in Europe, and then lived
in Asia. I am convinced that if you go to new places with an
open mind and an open heart, you can always start a dialogue.
Last May I traveled along the Silk Road: it was a deliberate trip,
I knew exactly what I was looking for and had done a lot of
research ahead of time. And when I came back, my team and
I worked hard on ideas, designs and patterns until we got our
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interpretation of it. This is of the utmost importance to me:
it’s not “we invented this,” but “this comes from them, they
created it. This is our interpretation.” I think this comes from
me being Iranian and seeing so much of our culture appropriated by the West, or attributed to India or the Arab world.
You also have an artistic background, since you studied
fine art photography. Do you think it influences your work
as a creative director, and the way you seek beauty? Yes, and
it could go even further, since my father is an avid collector
of antique textiles and carpets and I grew up surrounded by
beautiful things – funny that I ended up marrying into a family of textile editors! For a very long time, I kept my art and
work quite separate, because I felt that what I do, fine art photography, needed a sort of cocoon, to exist on its own. In fact,
I never wanted to do any of the photography for the company.
But deciding to work with Swiss artist Peter Hauser definitely
has something to do with my understanding of what he can
do, and how to push him creatively. Some years ago we were
working on our lookbook for the new collection. As usual, we
hung the textile in a room as a curtain. But this time it felt flat
and uninspiring, so we went outside and ended up wrapping
a tree with the fabric. The image was beautiful, and the press
loved it. I have realised that if I start from the question: “Does
this sell?”, then the shooting won’t work, at least not for me. A
lookbook has to be about inspirations, ideas, creativity. This
certainly has something to do with my artistic background.
What do you see as the biggest challenges facing the global
textile and interior design industry today? It’s people’s lack
of understanding about the importance of using good quality
fabrics. We’re becoming less and less knowledgeable, while
our grandmothers had a clear sense of what was quality and
what was not. Just buy a vintage version of anything – furniture, a coat, a sweater: what’s the difference? Everything. Also,
too many brands have broken our trust, especially recently:
when a T-shirt costs two dollars, something is wrong. That’s
less common in our industry, but we’re no different, we also
feel the price pressure. That’s also why I think we need to educate consumers to understand the difference, and to take care
of textiles so they can last. Sustainability only works if you
keep what you buy, cherish it, and don’t throw it away for the
next shiny thing. ●
