Over the past few years, Finnish designers were feeling a little (okay, a lot) disgruntled, and they vented on the runway with fuss-free garments with an understated appeal, among other things. Fast forward to 2024, these creative forces reworked minimalism by switching tactics, opting instead for a tongue-in-cheek vein. And colour. And a refreshing infusion of textile experimentation.
There’s a reason for that: These designers can do exuberance like nobody’s business, but as Scandi brands they are as affected as anyone by a garment’s simplicity that never ceases to unfold across the Nordic region.
Before last week’s events were presented within the Fashion in Helsinki program (Finland’s talent incubator that promotes local and established brands, co-organised by Juni’s communications director Martta Louekari), a new fashion map was already set. There was room to make a statement through extra, subversive staples and DIY processes: and that all came together in a collective runway show, which encompassed designers such as Sofia Ilmonen, ROLF EKROTH, HEDVIG, Jenny Hytönen and VAIN.
Sofia Ilmonen
Sofia Ilmonen
Sofia Ilmonen
“It’s all about strength and lengthening a garment’s life—strong silhouettes that come from prototype modules that I incorporate again and again, using modularity and materials like silk, Spinoza, and twill to construct a vast array of my staples,” stated Sofia Ilmonen after the show.
Just like Ilmonen, VAIN’s Jimi Vain and Roope Reinola have gone their own way, and their society clients—plus a number of social media darlings—love the house for it.
VAIN
“The collection we showcased was a brand overview,” they opined, explaining how they presented, “pages from past seasons with a mix of new and upcycled garments [a new product category for us].” The references behind the brand honed the subcultural elements of Finnish culture. “Our touch points include trap music, which gives birth to a melancholic and a gothic view of the world,” they said.
VAIN
“We acknowledged a fresh take on Finnish fashion because our garments act like a juxtaposition to the minimalist appeal every Scandi aficionado is accustomed to, and we deem our wardrobe to be a play of contrasts, where opposites come together; in fact, the brand is all about showing a new side that’s not necessarily soft and aesthetically pleasing.” Concretely, that translated into lots of ’90s-inflected silhouettes. And lots of muted colours. As the show notes proclaimed: “If it’s odd, it’s us.”
Moving onto lighter territory, there was nothing particularly novel, or mildly shocking about HEDVIG’s latest outing, but designer Sofia Järnefelt turned that to her advantage and created a cohesive lineup that embraced both elegance and functionality in equal measure.
HEDVIG
“I have been wondering throughout my whole life where my aesthetic actually comes from, because it’s not as minimalistic as any Scandinavian but it’s also not the roughness of the Finnish as one can note,” said Järnefelt. “I think in HEDVIG you can see that through the asymmetric ruffles, raw edges, workwear detailing and the combination of all these elements creates an opulent seam and a crude workwear one, too,” Järnefelt details.
At a time when re-emphasising house values is a wise tactical move, these clothes work and push for a great retail turnaround that could benefit most designers.
HEDVIG
HEDVIG
HEDVIG
The innovation on deck was very present in the annual fashion show of graduating BA and MA Fashion, Clothing and Textile Design students of Aalto University. The fashion studies are characterised by distinctive approaches to textiles, which brought forth a presentation of students who extensively experimented with materials and incorporated them into their design work.
Another brand worthy of note was JUSLIN MAUNULA, a Helsinki-based design studio and brand founded by Fashion Designer Laura Juslin and Architect Lilli Maunula. “Our shared vision, open-minded attitude and experimental way of working is the fuel that drives us,” they stated, explaining that, “Together we create products, installations, concepts and experiences; We imagine a universe of intriguing, imperfect beauty.”
Installation by JUSLIN MAUNULA
JUSLIN MAUNULA at Helsinki Design Week
In 2022, the design duo launched a lifestyle product line created from discarded textiles of random colours, styles and quantities, crafting stock in limited series to respect environmental standards.
All in all, it doesn’t particularly matter any more in the contemporary fashion world if a theme doesn’t completely hold up to scrutiny. What counts are the other tests that apply to clothes with depth and function: the specialness of each outfit and the relevance of the garments to what a fashion-conscious consumer might want to wear. It’s on those points that Finland’s fashion designers work to make their impact.
Jenny Hytönen
Jenny Hytönen
Jenny Hytönen
Their proposals—like an upcycled outerwear piece worn over draped, tile-patterned embroidered pants have tons of premium, contemporary desirability. Kudos to some other collections, like Jenny Hytönen’s plunging, elegantly-shaped gowns with intricate and sensuous structures which draw inspiration from human nature as well as the body.
If the thought process of Finnish designers sometimes lacks coherence, they’re still designers bringing a much-needed sense of modernity to a much-saturated spectrum of commercial redundancy.
by Chidozie Obasi
All runway images are courtesy of Guillaume Roujas