Workwear

Vintage & future

In Workwear you can see vintage classics, current highlights and futuristic experiments from a wide range of designers and artists. There are X-rays of Neil Armstrong’s lunar landing suit next to the ‘space suit’ with zip-off legs worn by members of the Dutch Provo movement. An original over-shirt by Arts and Crafts designer William Morris hangs not far from Red Coat, Nicola L’s 11-person rain suit, and Maria Blaisse’s Flexicap seems to nod to a textile sculpture by Franz Erhard Walter. An Italian Futurist overall by Thayaht and theatre costumes from the Russian avant-garde show how their designers imagined the future based on work clothes.

Now

At the request of Eldina Begic and the Nieuwe Instituut, spoken-word artist Elten Kiene and fashion designer Sam Cruden of Rotterdam label C. Cruden are creating new pieces especially for Workwear. They ask themselves, and the visitor, how workwear might look in the future.

Workwear

Wherever people do heavy or dangerous work, special clothing is essential for protection and to make the job easier. Super-sturdy trousers and jackets, helmets, overalls, gloves and goggles are all part of the kit. Designers are often involved in creating these work garments, especially when they are produced on a large scale.

Fashionable

Some work clothes need no description: a number like M-65 or 501 is enough to summon up visions of a camo jacket or a denim classic. From the assembly line, the mineshaft or the army training ground, items like these have gone on to win places in museum collections. Designers like Massimo Osti have translated them into clothing-store staples; fashion pioneers like Elsa Schiaparelli have turned them into luxury couture.