I won’t say that the fact that I just got a reminder to register for February fashion week didn’t put a little stress into my morning! It seems like you’ve hardly processed one season when the next is upon us -and I can’t imagine what a designer feels like. So I’m psyched to be posting this little interview in this space between fashion weeks.
I have been a fan of Daryl K’s work for years: deceptively simple pieces that are always being called edgy because they’re not overtly girly, to me they just seem confident…if clothes can be considered such! Her collection that will be coming out this spring is surprisingly colorful and I discovered that the gorgeous prints are a collaboration with artist Spencer Sweeney. In addition to being a painter Spencer is one of the owners of one of my favorite clubs, Santos Party House and is very much a part of nightlife in New York. He also has a show of his work up now at Gavin Brown’s Enterprise and it’s definitely worth checking out.
You both are very much part of “downtown” NYC. Did you know each other before collaborating? How did you meet?
We were definitely aware of each other through the years, but we did not connect until this collaboration. Our mutual connection was Gavin Brown, a friend of Daryl’s and who represents Spencer. Daryl had the idea to collaborate and reached out to Spencer through Gavin. The first meeting was mutually affirming – we love each other’s work and personally, we got along excellently.
How does the collaborative process work?
It begins with an exchange of sensibilities – Daryl explains the collection and ideas on shapes, fabrics and color. We then go through Spencer’s catalog of work and we discuss his forms, themes…details. We actually begun by appropriating close-up areas of various paintings and mocked up fabrics and initial tailoring. There was a type of ‘collage theme’ with the collection already, and this enabled a fluid collaboration. We ended up with a few existing paintings (the Scottsman top and pants), while we focused on a main, unique fabric – a custom painting by Spencer that was featured on the new JumpDress.
What has been most exciting about doing a collaboration?
Seeing a great outcome in terms of the clothes, and getting to know another artist through their work.
Was there anything unexpected in terms of the results or experience?
When putting together a collection – you learn to expect the unexpected. Yet overall, we were pleasantly surprised with how amazing the clothes looked. The showing was at Gavin Brown’s and was a fantastic experience – we had live drumming by Lizzie Bougatsos and Billy Ficca .
And individually: what’s your current favorite song/artist to listen to when you want to be creative/make shit.
Daryl: Today I have D.R. Hooker…..but I think I will have some Al Green tonight.
Spencer: It changes every moment… I can say this morning I had J.K. & Co. for breakfast.
