ANTWERP COOL
Photos & Text by Mr Hartnett. 2006
...
The Mode Natie, at the corner of Antwerp's
Nationalestraat and Drukkerijstraat, is the creative
fashion heart of the city. The MoMu Fashion Museum,
the Fashion Academy and the Flanders Fashion
Institute, have all set up base here. The interior is
stripped-down, minimal, all very skeletal and austere.
Perhaps more Yohji than Yamamoto himself.
The Antwerp fashion scene is clustered in and around
Nationalestraat and serves as a source of inspiration
for the entire neighbourhood. Antwerp is known
worldwide for designers such as Raf Simons, Ann
Demeulemeester and Martin Margiela - all of whom
graduated from the Antwerp Academy of Arts.
If it's shopping you want to do, check out LOUIS on
Lombardenstraat, STEPHAN SCHNEIDER on Reyndersstraat,
LABELS INC on Aalmoezenierstraat or even the somewhat
hilarious FISH AND CHIPS on Kammenstraat.
As a working environment for the students it is very
intimate, intense. Anybody sitting in the entrance
area of this building will see the next generation of
designers floating by with their dreams, as reflected
in many of the daytime pictures seen here in FUSED.
...
ANTWERP'S FANKLUB

Antwerp: beautiful girls on bikes,
beautiful boys with bobs. And Fanklub...
Photos & Text ©Mr Hartnett. 2006
