Guest Interview n°44: Stine Riis
R II S is the brand created by the Danish designer Stine Riis in 2011, the same year as she graduated from London College of Fashion and was chosen as one of The Best Student Worldwide by Vogue Italia. In 2012, she was also the first winner ever of H&M Design Award and did, besides the small collection for the Swedish fast-fashion chain, a collaboration with the Italian luxury store Luisa Via Roma. To say the least, things have been going good for Stine Riis. The Blogazine met with the designer after her A/W13 runway show during Copenhagen Fashion Week to talk about expectations, inspiration and the future.
2012 was a big year for you: the H&M Design Award among other things. Did you feel any pressure or anxiety over expectations while creating this collection?
Well, the collection I did right after the H&M Award was definitely a challenge because I thought I had a lot to live up to and as well, I had a lot of projects going on: I did the collaboration with Luisa Via Roma, I did the collection for H&M and then again, my own collection. Simply, there was a lot going on but with this collection I had more time, and more time to work into details, which I think really shows!
So you felt more relaxed about this collection?
The fall/winter season certainly is my comfort zone and last season was my first spring/summer collection ever, so in that way that was a big challenge. Today, with this collection, everything really came together and I am very pleased. I’m…I’m just speechless!
What was the process up to this A/W13 collection like? What was your main inspiration?
I was looking at geological studies of different materials and that is where the inspiration to do colours came from. I was also looking a lot at still life paintings and the symbols often used in them, such as hourglasses and other symbols that reference to the fast pace of life, which also links into fashion for me.
What is your philosophy looking at fashion from this time perspective?
Fashion changes so fast and that’s my constant dilemma as a designer because I’m trying to design these items that you want to wear more than one season, and that’s also why I really look into the materials I use.
And now, what lies ahead for R II S?
I try to make time to sometimes step away from my everyday life to try to see the big picture and plan for the future, I think that is really important.
Can you give us any hints on what the future holds?
Not yet, but definitely going abroad, that’s a plan.
