SHOEINFONET - Schools - Royal Academy

The Antwerp Royal Academy of Fine Arts

The Antwerp Royal Academy of Fine Arts (Koninklijke Academie voor Schone Kunsten van Antwerpen) is one of the oldest of its kind in Europe. It was founded in 1663 by David Teniers the Younger, painter to the Archduke Leopold and Don Juan of Austria. As the master of the SaintLuke's Guild of painters, sculptors, engravers and book printers, he wrote a petition to the Spanish king Philip IV, in which he explained that the guild wished to establish a public and free academy in Antwerp in order to'... encourage the said arts and raise their esteem'. As an example he cited the famous schools of Rome and Paris; the school in Antwerp was to serve the same goal of aiding'... the advancement of the said arts in the States of Your Majesty'.

The fashion department

By the sixties, in our present century, the general opinion had stopped considering the 'applied arts' to be of lesser value than the 'traditional arts'. In accordance with the spirit of the times, the then director, Mark Macken, added a number of new departments to the Royal Academy of Fine Arts: graphic design, photography, jewellery, ceramic arts and FASHION. Following the example of St Martins and the Royal College of Art in London, Mary Prijot championed the establishment of a fully-fledged fashion department within the Academy. She gave the fashion department an international appeal and set very high creative standards, both for fashion drawing and later, for fashion design. Together with Marthe Van Leemput, who added the subjects of tailoring and pattern design to the curriculum, she drew up a blueprint for the fashion department, a plan which still serves its purpose extremely well. Ann Demeulemeester, Dirk Bikkembergs, Walter van Beirendonck, Dirk Van Saene, Dries Van Noten and Martin Margiela are designers who graduated from the Academy in the beginning of the eighties, when the fashion department was under the patronage of Mary Prijot. Other prominent people in Belgian fashion who studied at the Academy are Linda Loppa, who is now the head of the fashion department; Nellie Nooren,Yvonne Dekock, Patrick De Muynck, and the aforementioned Van Beirendonck, teachers at the Academy, and Sofie De Rijckere and An Vandevorst, both guest lecturers at their former school.

Fashion

The fashion department of the Antwerp Academy sees fashion in the broadest sense of the word, as a form of expression of the emotions of our times. Clothing reflects society or, adversely, questions it. Fashion people are not a self-absorbed clique, but committed people who question prevailing concepts of ethics and aesthetics and take a stand for or against aggression, rejection, denial, helplessness. In fashion, there is a freedom of expression which can at times be shocking, alarming, astounding or tempting.

The training provided by the fashion department stimulates innovation. The media feature new fashions and trends in quick succession so as to keep public interested. The impulse to re-create, to open up new horizons and to overthrow existing concepts is essential and characteristic of our visual culture. Every fashion designer is influenced by this rhythm to a greater or lesser extent. This variety of personal visions and angles keeps fashion alive and fascinating. Above all, this training is aimed, at encouraging the students to create and to explore innovative forms, new colour combinations and original treatments of materials. Our approach is focused on experimentation, improvisation and formal innovation. The goal is that the students ultimately achieve an appealing synthesis of all these aspects, on the basis of the professional skills they have acquired. By nature, a designer has a limitless interest in the unknown and the new. This is a tendency which we try to stimulate in our students. All art forms feature on the curriculum: the history of art, the history of dress, film, literature and music. Other cultures and worlds are explored, and philosophy and psychology contribute to a profound and enriching personal development. The curriculum also includes drawing from a model, which is both a form of contemplation and a guideline for designing. Learning to create the illusion of depth on a sheet of paper is undoubtedly a plus for the artistic development of a designer. We aim at training designers who combine their natural and stimulated creativity with a virtuosity in different disciplines and with excellent professional skills as well as the required perseverance.

'Meestergraad'

1996 was a year of changes. The Academy was subsumed under the Hogeschool Antwerpen (the newly-established umbrella institute which groups institutes of higher education in Antwerp). It is one of 11 schools in an wide range of institutes of higher education. About 6,000 students are enrolled at present. The degree issued by this department is now a'Meestergraad'.

A certificate of general secondary education is a prerequisite for subscribing to the entrance exam. The enrolment fee amounts to BEF 18.250. Students can choose when to sit for the obligatory entrance exam, which is held once in July and once in September. The annual curriculum covers at least 30 weeks. All students are obliged to take theoretical subjects in Dutch.

On 1 January 1997, the fashion department had to move for the time being. The fashion department has found a temporary location in the city's fashion centre, in rooms on the third floor of 18, Kammenstraat.

Four years

The freshman year of the training in fashion design is composed around three main artistic subjects. The most important course is the one on fashiondesign, which is taught by Nellie Nooren. The other two main courses are graphics, taught by Paul Diels and Yvonne Dekock, and tailoring/pattern design, taught by Chris Fransen. In addition to these three main subjects, the curriculum contains two specific subjects. One of these is the history of dress, starting with the earliest civilisations. Parallel to the historical periods treated in this course, the students are given a number of assignments in the graphics and design courses. The course on fashion and textiles forecasting familiarizes the students with various forms of communication in the fashion industry: professional jargon, material and colour sample charts and descriptions of general trends and impressions. Various assignments are given in all these artistic disciplines. The students are expected to work on them using as much creativity as possible and with an emphasis on experiment and innovation. Drawing teachers tutor the students in drawing from a model, a unique discipline which is taught in al departments and years. The curriculum further contains five theoretical courses covering the humanities and artistic-theoretical sciences such as the history of art, literature, philosophy, sociology and psychology.

The same three main artistic subjects are taught in the second year. Fashion design is taught by Patrick De Muynck, graphics by Paul Diels, and tailoring/pattern design by Elke Hoste. From the rich history of dress until 1940, each of the students has to choose a historical figure with a costume typical for the period. Then, they have to do thorough research on the historical figure they have chosen and on his or her period, including the political, cultural and social structures of the time, as well as a detailed study of the fabrics, materials, patterns and forms characteristic of the age. The students then spend the first term recreating this historical costume down to the smallest details, including underwear, accessories, coiffure and make-up. This rather time-consuming technical assignment prepares the student for the work they will have to do during the next two terms, in which the emphasis lies on the more creative aspects of the main assignment, which is: the creation of an 'avant-garde' fashion collection of five silhouettes. This consists of drawing and making complete outfits and selecting colours and materials, inspired by the research carried out in the first term. Graphics teacher Paul Diels sees to it that the drawing work is tuned to the individual collections and that the students develop a personal style. In addition to the obligatory course in drawing from a model, the second year covers two specific subjects: the history of dress from the Renaissance to the present, and modelling / draping, taught by Heidi Pille. In this course, the students acquire the skill of modelling and draping, working with materials directly on live models or dummies, without the aid of pencil and pattern paper. Not that the two disciplines are incompatible, quite on the contrary: by using materials to create forms and volumes directly, the students acquire a more direct knowledge of the art of tailoring, which they can then use in two-dimensional pattern drawing. Seminars on shoemaking, millinery or glove-making and other projects add variety to the programme and may also be useful in the students' later careers. Finally, there are six theoretical subjects: contemporary art, art history, literature, philosophy, sociology and psychology.

Third-year students (the 'first year Graduate programme') are required to present a collection of 8 silhouettes by the end of the year. This collection must be based on a preliminary study of either a European or a non European culture. Again, the recreation of a typical costume or dress is seen as a necessary period of contemplation before starting to design the individual collection itself. The study of ethnic peoples leads to surprising discoveries, which, combined with the student's own experiences, can give rise to an original collection. Teacher Walter Van Beirendonck supervises the creative aspects from the beginning to the end, while Chris Fransen helps the students to find solutions to the technical and dimensional problems of tailoring. Regular consultation between the student and the teacher is very important. The best final results are achieved by those students whose creativity, enthusiasm and justification of the selected theme are followed up on a regular basis. The students can further broaden their horizons in the seminars on knitwear given by Sophie Derijckere, and the courses on modelling/draping taught by Heidi Pille. Drawing from a model remains an important artistic subject on the curriculum. In this 'first year Graduate programme', the students have to take four theoretical subjects which they can choose from a broad range of courses.

The final year (the 'second year Graduate programme'), which is guided by Linda Loppa, is almost entirely devoted to the final collection which is to include a minimum of 12 silhouettes. In this year, the students are expected to display a synthesis of all the skills and techniques they have acquired. The students are given complete freedom in selecting their source of inspiration: a favourite artist, a social or political question, a fascinating period in history. In order to have a fully-fledged all-round collection at the end of the year, the students have to start planning and designing very early on in the academic year. Final-year students need to draw on all their organisational skills and plan everything well right from the start. The outcome is to be the crown on four years of hard work. The final-year collections must reflect both the spirit of our times and the designer's position with regard to prevailing trends. The approaching reality of professional life means that students become preoccupied with practical questions. These are discussed in the course on marketing, press & media, which is taught by Linda Loppa. Journalists, press agents, shop owners, fashion designers and companies are invited to give lectures on their profession. The entire staff meets at regular intervals during the academic year in order to discuss and evaluate the work in progress of all four years, together with the students.

CURRICULUM

	1st DC		2nd DC		1st GP		2nd GP
	ed.activity	credits	ed.activity	credits	ed.activity	credits	ed.activity	credits
Subject
Component
ARTISTIC WORKSHOP
design	180	15	210	15	240	16
patterns	180	10	120	8	120	8
graphics/typography	75	4
fashion drawing	75	4
fashion graphics			90	6	120	7
modelling			60	4	90	5
graduation project							600	43
specific knowledge		7		7		8		5
- fashion and textile prognosis	30
- specific art history	60		30
- project seminar(s)			30
- textile studies			60
- knitting and weaving technics					60
- electronic imaging					60		60
- press and media							30
GENERAL EDUCATION
life drawing	120	6	120	6	90	4
artistic-theoretical sciences		7
- art history	60		30
- literature	30		30
- contemporary issues in art			30
social sciences		7		7
- philosophy	30		30
- social studies	30		30
- psychology	30		30	7
optional course components (summarized)					120	12	120	12
totals	900	60	900	60	900	60	810	60

The educational activities have been expressed in the number of hours per year.

Collaboration

Despite the demanding curriculum, there are still opportunities for collaboration on projects in the cultural or commercial sector. Collaboration with various economic sectors is a reality which the students are bound to have to deal with in their later careers. This academic year for instance, the students have gained useful experience in projects with Coca-Cola, Master of Linen, Casio and Marks & Spencer. The profits from these projects are used for purchasing equipment, organising seminars, press conferences and for inviting guest designers and lecturers. However, the department takes care that these commercial activities do not become an extra burden for the students on top of the well-filled curriculum.

International

In the beginning of the eighties, the international press started to get interested in Antwerp fashion designers. From then on, the fashion department of the Royal Academy shared in this international interest, not in the least because of the continuous quality of the collections designed by some of our now famous ex-students such as Martin Margiela, Dries van Noten, Ann Demeulemeester, Dirk Van Saene, Walter Van Beirendorick and Dirk Bikkembergs, and through the efforts of the ITCB and the organisation of the competition'De Gouden Spoel' (The Golden Spindle). Interviews were published or broadcast by Japanese, English, American, Italian, German and French magazines and television channels.

The show

The annual fashion show is a celebration of fashion, bringing together some 6,000 spectators from Belgium, France, England, Italy, Germany, Holland, U.S.A. and Japan, from all over the world, not only to judge and/or admire the collections of our students, but also for the unique atmosphere of this grand defile The event takes place at the Handelsbeurs in Twaalfmaandenstraat, the world's first trade fair centre, where people have been trading since the Middle Ages. Once a year, the building is filled with friends, fashion enthusiasts, manufacturers, former students, fashion designers, styling agencies, culture buffs and the press. Their interest and appreciation are the reward for the continuous efforts of both students and teachers, year after year. The show is repeated three evenings in a row. Students from all four years show their work on the catwalk. The jury composed by national and international fashion an art people, judge their collections and installations. The spectacle pays its own way: the entire show is financed by the sale of tickets and catalogues.

Designers who graduated at our fashion department:
Designers with a collection under their own name:
Ann Demeulemeester, Martin Margiela, Dries Van Noten, Dirk Bikkembergs, Walter Van Beirendonck, Dirk Van Saene, Kaat Tilley, Eva Lacres, Jan Welvaert, Lieve Van Gorp, Wim Neels, Anna Heylen, Stephan Schneider, Sarah Corynen, Jurgi Persoons, Christoph Charon, Kristof De Muynck, Anne Sophie de Campos Resend's, Ellen Monstrey, Christoph Broich, An Vandevorst, Veronique Branquinho, Josephus Thimister.
Gigue by Jo Wijckman;
Dada Children by Kathleen Kuppens and Brigit Tulkens.

Designers abroad:
Josephus Thimister at Genny - Patrick Van Ommeslaeghe at Adeline Andre -Angelique Raeven and Hans Dufoer for Jean-Paul Gaultier - Valeska Schmidt Thomson at Callaghan - Wies Shulte for Kenzo - Manuel Samyn for Thierry Mugler - Nana Pause at Jil Sander - Kris Van Assche and Marjolein Van De Heuvel for Yves Saint Laurent - Nana Baehr for Ocimar Versolato,

Designers such as: Wouter Hoste - Fred Debouvry - Koen De Keyser - Ann Goormachtigh - Anick Van Den Broeck - Rika Bauduin - Valerie Van Immerseel - Patrick De Muynck - Catharina Van Den Bossche - Annelies Braeckman - Filip Arickx - An Vandevorst - David Van De Wal - Nico Vandevorst - Henriette Ernst - Maureen De Clerck - Grace Van De Velde Jessie Lecomte - Patrick Fransen - Sabine Devriendt - Sofie Derijckere working for Zino & Judy - Marks & Spencer -Andres - Different Dialogue - Van Hassels - Dolce Piu - Bartsons - Scapa - United Arrows - LIC - Dries Van Noten - Walter Van Beirendonck - C&A - Berghaus - Caroline Biss - Bellerose - Migosha - etc...

Other ex-students working for fashion magazines: Olivier Rizzo - Peter De Potter - Ellen Monstrey - Delphine Dumoulin as stylists or working as a make-up artist such as Peter Philips.

Ex-students who work for styling agencies: Catharina Van Eetvelde and Vera Van Den Bossche at Studio Lidewij Edelkoort (Paris).
Our apologies to anyone we might have left out.

The juries

Over the years, we have had the honour of having the following people on the international jury:
Angela Quintrell of Liberty (London) - Jean-Paul Gaultier (Paris) - Amy Spindler (New York Times) - Lidewij Edelkoort (stylingbureau Paris) Catharina Van Eetvelde (Lidewij Edelkoort Paris) - Mme Simonetta Ciampi (Prada -Italy) - John Perrie, Pierre Coucke (3 Suisses) - Marisa Zannetti, Gloria Zwaiffel (Zamasport, producer for Callaghan - Gucci in Italy) Michael Skidmore for Barneys (New York) - Karl Templar (The Face London) - Maria Luisa (Maria Luisa, Paris) - Marie-Sofie Carron de La Carrière (Musée de la Mode, Paris) - Elizabeth Paillié (Paris) - Many Porters (Harvey Nichols, London) - Barbara Weiser (Charivari, New York) - Markus Von Ackerman (Vogue-Paris) - Lola Coppini (Linea Piu, Italy) - Alexander Mc Queen (designer, London) - Hirofumi Kurino (United Arrows, Japan) Annette Coldstein (Esmod, Paris) - Patrick Cabasset journalist, Paris) Sofie Meisel (Journal Du Textile, Paris) - Agnes Goyvaerts (De Morgen) - Veerle Windels (Journalist) - Lene Kemps (Knack) - Christine Matthijs (Dries Van Noten) - Yan Aerts (Inno)- Gerdi Esch (Elga) - Pol Van Hees (Bartsons) Sonia Noel (Stijl, Brussels) - Martin Margiela (designer) - Ann Demeulemeester (designer) - Dirk Van Saene (designer) - Dries Van Noten (designer).

The 1997 jury
Mats Gustafson (designer, New York) - Takeji Hirakawa (Japan) - Stephen Jones (Hatdesigner, London) - Filip Arickx (designer, Belgium) - Sonia Rachline (Vogue, France) - Murielle Guyot (Salon Athmosphere, Paris) Patrick Cabasset ( Officiel, Paris) - Agnes Goyvaerts (De Morgen, Belgium) Gerdi Esch (Elga, Belgium) - Lene Kemps (Knack-Weekend, Belgium).
The 1998 jury
Guest of Honour: Suzy Menkes (Herald Tribune) - Sheilagh Brown (Marks & Spencer) - Lydia Kamitsis (Musee de la Mode Paris) - Elisabeth Paillie (Vogue Hommes International-Madame Figaro) - Marcus Von Ackermann (Vogue France) - Katie Grand (Dazed & Confused) - Pandora Tabatabai Asbaghi (Fondazione Prada) - Milan (Colette Paris) - Manon Schaap (View on Colour) - Thimo te Duits (Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen) - Takeji Hirakawa (Journalist Tokyo)- Hirofumi Kurino (United Arrows Japan)- Agnes Goyvaerts (Journalist De Morgen) - Wim Neels (Fashion Designer).

The Flanders Fashion Institute

On 18 May, the non-profit association 'Mode Antwerpen' (Antwerp Fashion) was awarded the title of '1997 Cultural Ambassador for Flanders'. The founding members of this association are Linda Loppa, Geert Bruloot and Patrick De Muynck.

With this award, Minister of Culture Luc Martens and Minister-President of the Flemish Community Luc Van de Brande are supporting the initiative, the establishment and the internationalisation of the FLANDERS FASHION INSTITUTE.

The aims of the FFI are:

to promote Flemish culture internationally;
to provide active support to the younger generation of fashion designers;
to organise interesting museum events for the city of Antwerp;
to conduct scientific research;
to involve the economic sector in the fashion scene;
to conserve and catalogue both older and recent works;
to offer postgraduate training;
to revalue underestimated crafts such as embroidery, cutting and draping, shoemaking, glove-making and millinery, professions which are inextricable bound up with fashion.

The FFI is operational since March 1st 1998. It is supported by the Strategic Plan for Antwerp, represented by Annick Bogaert. The non-profit association 'Mode Antwerpen' is already organising projects, such as with the Flemish-Catalan collaboration agreement in Barcelona, a presentation during the world exposition in Lisboa 1998, and VITRINE'98 with several expositions in Antwerp.

For more information:

Flanders Fashion Institute
Eiermarkt,13 - 2000 Antwerp
Belgium
Tel: 32 3 226 14 47 - Fax: 32 3 232 63 96
If you want more information send a fax or an Email.
E-mail: ffi@dma.be

This page is made in collaboration with Flanders Fashion Institute