In Conversation with – Howitzweissbach
Eva Howitz and Frieder Weissbach are the inventive and intriguing fashion designers, who founded – together with their manager, Marcus Pester – Howitzweissbach, the young German label established in Leipzig.
Both the Howitzweissbach creative thinkers are strongly convinced of the importance of being able to go behind the garments, following all the production steps and grasping their ‘soul’. There is always a story, a concept behind their collections. Howitz and Weissbach’s unconventional and unique approach comes from a mix of regional traditions – all the products are realised in the Saxony area – and takes its inspiration mainly from art. Howitzweissbach pieces of clothing are based on quality and paid attention to details like the choice of patterns and fabrics or the use of French sewing, to give suits a pure and clean look, inside and out.
The brand doesn’t follow the trends and keeps aside the fashion industry to create its own style, recognizable thanks to an artistic and unusual taste, which communicates the founders’ values. The designers’ love for fashion and proximity to their audience made them feel the need of building up a second, affordable line named Freund (Friend), which “is not for everybody, it’s especially for friends”. Joining the online project Make your mess – the first experimental move of Howitzweissbach Freund online shop – people can buy a plain white piece and take part in a performance during which it will be splashed with colours. The result will be a one-of-a-kind item that reminds the works by the German contemporary artist Katharina Grosse, one of the members of the ‘Howitzweissbach own cosmos’.
Monica Lombardi – with special thanks to Matteo Cherubino & Davide Calafà
