Discovering new designers is rather exciting. You never know when you’ll meet the next big thing. Recently no one stood out more than Rainbow Winters. Who else shows you their collection by torch light?
Amy Konstanze Mercedes, designer for Rainbow Winters, is a media artist and fashion designer who launched her first collection in September 2010 for London Fashion Week. It was full of ready-to-wear printed garments which change colour on reaction to sunlight and water. When she shows you the effects with said torch, it makes quite an impact. How many of your clothes can do that?
The half-British half-Swiss designer originally trained at Central Saint Martins in London as a set and costume designer, specialising in creating extravagant costumes for operas. After graduation she produced fashion shows and worked in the smart textiles industry on research and development projects collaborating with scientists to create new fabrics for the fashion industry such as holographic leathers. One of her first projects for Rainbow Winters was the ‘Thunderstorm’ dress; lightning bolts illuminate in response to sound, creating visual music. The showpiece had a fantastic ‘wow’ factor but she was looking for something which was suitable for a ready-to-wear line. That’s when she discovered sun and water reactive inks which would transform under sunlight/UV light and could be printed on any type of fabric. She has many more ideas, but can’t give anything away yet. I’m intrigued!
When asked what her inspirations were Amy said:
“At the core of my work lies my obsession with colour and transformation; change, response and process. The idea of clothes being interactive and holding a special quality is important. Examples include prints blooming colour under sunlight, or dresses which illuminate to the beat of music. Furthermore, I aim to use technology in a way which is less about the gimmicks and more about design – so nature plays a role in inspiring collections, especially the dramatic side such as wild thunderstorms and tornado’s!
“S/S 12 was inspired by an island bathed in dazzling light and luminous clear waters. All the colours used in the garments such as aqua, coral and white are reflections of the island. Natural day-light is also used as an interactive device as inks hand-printed on the fabric change from clear to colour under sunlight.”
She tells me that the Rainbow Winters woman is experimental, playful and expressive whilst having a feminine side. “The tech bit is meant to give an added dimension to clothes which are essentially already aesthetically beautiful”, explains Amy. I couldn’t agree more, they are beautiful and the fact they change colour is an added bonus. There has been plenty of media interest and within a year Rainbow Winters is retailing ready-to-wear products in London, Hong-Kong and Japan. They have been featured in mainstream technology/futurology magazines such as WIRED who called her collection “Chemical Couture”; which I think is perfect.
Currently she is working on her ready-to-wear line for A/W 12 and plans to exhibit in Paris in March. She is also planning to work on projects which explore the expressive capabilities of technology & fashion.
I hope when you go out there and get to know Rainbow Winters, you’ll get as excited as me. Not only are the brand’s ideas the future of fashion, the girl behind it is very sweet and hard-working and I expect to hear a lot more about her. Watch this space.
