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September 25, 2007 9:46 am
Back in New Zealand, designer and Kiwi style ambassador Karen Walker is a national treasure. After her New York show, the designer flew to Auckland to party with her hometown supporters. We caught up with Walker for a chat in her studio about NZ style, her approach to jewelry, and her upcoming New York shop.
You show in New York, you used to show in London, and your business is growing worldwide. So why do you continue to live in Auckland?
It’s a lifestyle choice. I like having the two extremes in my life—working and showing in the world’s fashion capitals yet living in the forest in New Zealand. Extremes are what interest me in my work and also in my life.
Does all the designing take place here at your headquarters?
I’d like to be able to design on the run, but the reality is I prefer to have the full board in front of me. So, yes, all the design takes place here in Auckland.
How are your designs indicative of Kiwi style?
Our designs have one foot firmly in a casual aesthetic, which comes from the casual lifestyle here. It’s not a red-carpet kind of town. But we like throwing that casualness against high-end tailored glamorous elements to get the electricity happening.
There’s a dark thread in many of the collections that were shown at New Zealand fashion week. What’s that about?
There’s a rugged wildness to the physical landscape and the climate, which I think can sometimes be reinterpreted in the creative work coming out of New Zealand—in any discipline. We like to take some of the ruggedness and throw it against something more delicate, pretty, and optimistic to see what happens.
Your jewelry line is quite robust. What defines your taste in jewelry?
Fine jewelry is so often associated with wearing it being to mark some big occasion. I like the idea of it being more an everyday thing—why not wear the pearls to go out for morning coffee? Also, we’ve mixed the traditionally high-end materials—gold, silver, diamonds, pearls, etc.—up by throwing them against quite whimsical, cute designs. So you end up with pieces like our little runaway-girl logo in solid gold or our cigarette butt in solid gold with black diamonds in its tip. The intention being to create pieces that have a sense of humor and whimsy to them and to question traditional jewelry.
Last season you launched eyewear. What’s next in KW’s arsenal?
We’re going to be doing a pop-up store in February, March, and April next year in the East Village in New York with the guys from Odin. We’re very excited about that! The space they have is called Den and it’s on East 11th Street. They currently have Rag & Bone in there and it’s a super-cute space. We’ll be open from New York fashion week on, and will stock our women’s line, jewelry, and eyewear.
With a baby on the way, no plans for Karen Walker kids’?
No! It’s enough work creating the baby without creating the clothes for it as well.
—Jason Campbell
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