Raf Simons

As creative director for diverse international fashion houses, Raf Simons has left an indelible mark on the fashion of recent decades. In addition to his iconic women’s silhouettes, the MoMu collection also includes a representative overview of the men’s fashions that he continued to design under his own name.

Left mannequin wearing black hat, dress vest, white shirt and black shorts; right mannequin doll with blue shirt and black shorts — Raf Simons, Autumn-Winter 2012-13

Gray invitation with rose blue lettering for Raf Simons spring/summer show 1997 — Raf Simons, Spring-Summer 1997 invitation

Mannequin in crocheted, translucent longsleeve and matching pants — Raf Simons, Autumn-Winter 1998-99

Color image of young skater in shirt with caption "teenage summer camp" — Raf Simons, Spring-Summer 1997

Mannequin in black bomber, gray pants and black sneaker — Raf Simons, Autumn-Winter 2000-01

Mannequin in red and gray turtleneck and long white painted vest — Raf Simons, Autumn-Winter 2015-16

Invitation Raf Simons autumn/winter 1997-98 — Raf Simons, Autumn-Winter 1997-98 invitation

Mannequin in black oversized poncho and pants — Raf Simons, Autumn-Winter 1999-2000

Mannequin in red oversized coat and white shirt — Raf Simons, Spring-Summer 2017

Mannequin in piece, consisting of wool knit top and T-shirt with photograph of a young woman — Raf Simons, Autumn-Winter 2018-19

Mannequin with translucent umbrella, brown headpiece and multicolored top — Raf Simons, Spring-Summer 2018

As an industrial design student in Genk, Raf Simons was intrigued by the Antwerp Six and decided to apprentice with Walter Van Beirendonck. Linda Loppa, then head of the Antwerp fashion academy, encouraged him to make the leap into fashion without having studied fashion. Simons launched his own label in 1995, and his first show in Paris followed in 1997. His narrow silhouettes in classic fabrics and his combination of traditional tailoring elements with references to diverse youth cultures and music sparked radical innovation in men’s fashion. From 2005, he has also designed for women, first as creative director for Jil Sander and for Dior from 2012 to 2015. Following a brief intermezzo with the American Calvin Klein label, in 2020 he became one of the creative co-directors for Prada, at Miuccia Prada’s side, in a unique collaboration that further confirms Simons’s long-lasting influence on the world of fashion.

Revolutionary visual language

Catwalk models Raf Simons - spring/summer 1999 runway show — Raf Simons, Spring-Summer 1999 show

Invitation Raf Simons - "Isolated Heroes," 2002 - model with red-black hair — Raf Simons, 'Isolated Heroes' invitation, 2002

Raf Simons sees clothing as a medium for creating dialogue and for visualizing an attitude. His models, whom he initially sought out himself in the streets of Antwerp, strengthen his revolutionary aesthetic. Video also has an important role in the presentation of his work. In the lookbook for his Woe Onto Those Who Spit on the Fear Generation… The Wind Will Blow It Back collection, for example, he used stills from a video created by Willy Vanderperre.

Raf Simons, lookbook, Spring-Summer 2002 — Raf Simons, lookbook 'Woe Onto Those Who Spit on the Fear Generation… The Wind Will Blow it Back', Spring-Summer 2002

ARTISTIC INTERVENTIONS

The 2014-15 Autumn-Winter collection was the result of years of exchange between Raf Simons and Sterling Ruby. The artist created sculptures from textiles which encircled the catwalk, while the collection revealed their shared visual language through the use of photo collages, words and a punk DIY aesthetic with outfits spattered with paint.

Mannequin in red top — Raf Simons, Spring-Summer 2002

From 2001, Raf Simons regularly worked with visual artist Peter de Potter, who creates poetic slogans. ‘Kollaps’ refers to the title of the first album by the German band, Einstürzende Neubauten. In retrospect, it almost seems as if the collection anticipated the 9/11 terrorist attacks, which took place a few months after the show.

Mannequin in black top with pictures — Raf Simons, Spring-Summer 2017

The 2017 Spring-Summer collection is an homage to the American photographer Robert Mapplethorpe (1946-1989). Mapplethorpe’s black-and-white portraits of artists, musicians and porn stars captured the New York cultural scene during the 1970s and 1980s. In collaboration with the Robert Mapplethorpe Foundation, Raf Simons selected over 100 photographs from the foundation’s archives. His choices included portraits of personalities he admires, such as artist Laurie Anderson and musician David Byrne. In harmony with the purity of Mapplethorpe’s work, Simons integrated the photographs in simple silhouettes, focussing considerable attention onto how the images were framed. The labels in the garments also bear witness to a shared artistic signature: Raf Simons // Robert Mapplethorpe.

Mannequin in top with portrait of artist Brian Calvin — Raf Simons, Spring-Summer 2013

In his 2013 Spring-Summer collection, Simons integrated a number of portraits of the artist Brian Calvin. For the designer, in combination with short shorts, they evoke the relaxed atmosphere of Los Angeles, the home of the painter.

I am interested in creative collaboration, because dialogue is the best way to evolve. Collaboration is challenging, but in a good way. It can pull you out of your own comfort zone and lead you to something new.
Raf Simons for the MoMu exhibition, 'E/Motion: Fashion in Transition', 2021

The Leap to Women’s Fashion

Mannequin in dark blue knee length dress and black pumps — Raf Simons for Jil Sander, Autumn-Winter 2009-10

Mannequin in white top with long orange skirt — Raf Simons for Jil Sander, Spring-Summer 2011

After ten years of designing menswear, as creative director for Jil Sander, Simons added women’s fashion to his repertoire in 2005. While remaining faithful to the minimalist aesthetic of its founder, he infused the brand with new energy in the form of streamlined silhouettes and references to visual art and music.

Diorafsimo

Mannequin in black tailored suit by Raf Simons for Dior — Raf Simons for Dior, Spring-Summer 2013

Mannequin in pink top, black shorts and silver heels — Raf Simons for Dior, Spring-Summer 2013

In 2012, Simons became creative director for Dior. He modernized the codes of the French couture house by highlighting Christian Dior's iconic legacy and innovating with bold use of materials and colours.

CALVIN KLEIN ENLARGED

Mannequin in colorful feather dress — Zoom in on Raf Simons for Calvin Klein By Appointment, Autumn-Winter 2017-18

This dress in organza, decorated with polychrome hand-painted feathers, was one of the first of Raf Simons’ creations for the American label, Calvin Klein. The Belgian designer was appointed creative director in August of 2016, and the following January, he launched the Calvin Klein by Appointment line, with designs made to measure. Actress Julianne Moore wore the dress for the Costume Institute Benefit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. A reworked version of the dress appeared in the Autumn-Winter collection of 2017-18, which highlighted references to Americana, with sheriff’s jackets and brightly-coloured marching band uniforms. A year later, Simons explored safety and protection, incorporating fire-fighting gear, knitted balaclavas and Mylar survival blankets transformed into dresses, finished with lace.

Runway model in Road Runner print sweater, long silver gloves and long matching plaid skirt — Raf Simons for Calvin Klein, Autumn-Winter 2018-19 show

Mannequin in purple-pink hat, silver robe and white gloves — Raf Simons for Calvin Klein, Autumn-Winter 2018-19

Author: Romy Cockx
Photo above: Bert Houbrechts / Marleen Daniëls