Corrie Nelson: Why couture is the future of fashion
While Paris is undeniably the home of couture, London is often considered the birthplace of some of the industry's brightest talents; the exciting, multi-cultural hub where many of the world's greatest couturiers come to hone their craft and learn.
American-born Corrie Nielsen is one such designer who found a home for her talent in London. The Central St Martin's graduate and former Fashion Fringe winner has shown her ready-to-wear collections during both London and Paris Fashion Week in the past - but, in a significant change in direction, has decided that her skills are better suited to the lofty echelons of the couture world.
"I've always been a couturier at heart," Nielsen tells us. "After receiving feedback from the press and buyers, I felt pursuing couture was the right fit, considering the way I work and the construction of the design that goes into collection pieces." Indeed, as one of the few modern designers who does everything by hand - from sketches and pattern-creating to fabric-cutting and weaving - she's already a veritable one-woman atelier. Her previous lines, while described as ready-to-wear, bore many hallmarks more commonly associated with more technical couture designs, featuring clever structuring and incredible attention to detail.
For her forthcoming couture collection, Unbroken, Nielsen took inspiration from "the continuous energy within the universe", she explains. Having done extensive research using NASA's archives, her pieces recall star constellations and formations of magnetic fields, resulting in beautiful cocooned tailoring, ethereal gowns and delicate quilting plotting the circular formation of astral charts. "Couture is about the craft," she adds. "It's about the approach to making the dress. But, to me, couture is also a state of mind."
Nielsen's couture abilities have already been recognised by many of her peers, including the curators of the Balenciaga: Shaping Fashion exhibition at the Victoria & Albert Museum, which came to a close earlier this year, where her work was featured alongside a number of contemporary designers who were influenced by the undisputed 'master of couture'.
So might we see more designers swapping ready-to-wear for a more considered couture approach in the future?
"One can only make assumptions about the future but never predict the outcome as it is always changing and evolving," says Nielsen. "However, as long as there is a desire for couture across the globe, it will continue to evolve from its original form. And if you remember, it all actually started with couture. I also think that there is an increased emphasis on individual look and that will prevail in seasons to come."
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