24 October 2024
Finalist Gaëlle Lang Halloo (France), a fashion designer supported by the Alliance for European Flax-Linen & Hemp and its members, won the Prix du Public awarded by the town of Hyères in the Fashion Winners category of the Festival d'Hyères 2024. Here's a look back at this victory.
Gaëlle Lang Halloo stood out with her ‘Abseits’ (‘Offside’ in German) project at the Hyères Fashion Festival 2024, winning the Public Prize of the city of Hyères (Prix du Public de la ville d'Hyères).
‘Abseits’ is a collection for men, created with the support of the Alliance's European weaving and spinning members, for several products.
We observe an unexpected total look in sportswear Linen, created in collaboration with Lineaesse Tessuti, Riopele Texteis - certified European Flax™ companies- and Tessuti di Sondrio - certified European Flax™ and Masters of Linen™ company.
Linen is back in an ultra-innovative form. Designer Gaëlle Lang Halloo's silhouettes, for example, use the fabric in a sportswear look. Rarely associated with a jogging-style look, linen nevertheless manages to reinvent itself in this outfit.
Research for the collection began after a visit to the ‘Designing the Beautiful Game’ exhibition at the London Design Museum. It was a revelation for the designer.
Gaëlle Lang Halloo reinvents everyday sportswear, such as tracksuits and football shirts, creating a link between these two worlds.
The concept of the collection is:
Regular clothes with an extraordinary look.Gaëlle Lang Halloo
Gaëlle Lang Halloo réinvente les vêtements de sport du quotidien, tels que les survêtements et les maillots de football, créant un lien entre ces deux univers.
I did a collection called Abseits about football. For me, the concept of the collection is: ‘ordinary clothes with an extraordinary look’.
When I heard about linen and the possible partnership with the Alliance, I found it extremely interesting. It was a challenge because I'd worked with linen before, but never on sportswear. Linen is a natural, ‘breathable’ material, which for me has a link with streetwear. I really wanted to ‘twist’ this material in my collection.
What interested me about this natural material was the structure of the linen itself, because I think it almost looks like Jersey piqué. When you dye it, you almost get a mottled effect. I thought it was really beautiful.
The outfit I worked on has a slightly retro feel. The short-sleeved shirt is a tribute to Saint-Étienne and its legendary football team. The trousers are inspired by workwear. They're extremely wide and look like a skirt with chains. The cut is reminiscent of sportswear. I didn't know this, but there are coated linens: I was intrigued because there's something really new about them.
The accessories include a bob. With its paper effect, I think this material is really pretty, it's very pleasant and easy to work with.
One of the key pieces in my collection is a fanny pack with 2 sleeves. It can be opened with a zip to access an inside pocket. You can wear it around your neck like a scarf, or tie it around your shoulders or waist like the sleeves of a sweater.
My collection celebrates France, and I think it's interesting to promote a material that's part of our heritage, so I've designed a complete outfit around linen.
Gaëlle Lang Halloo
Exactly! I didn't know of any sportswear brands that used linen. So I found it really interesting to work in this area, with this plant-based material.
In the future, I can also imagine working on jerseys that take a page out of the football shirt book. There's so much you can do with linen! The further away it is from my world, the more I want to explore a new creative process.
I loved working on this linen total look.
As part of its ongoing commitment to the young talent of contemporary fashion, the Alliance for European Flax-Linen & Hemp harnesses the initiative and support of its members, European weavers, spinners and knitters to support emerging talent.
Playing the role of industrial and cultural mediator, the Alliance encourages the creativity of the young fashion designers. It offers finalists access to the textile and technical innovations of certified European Flax™ and/or Masters of Linen™ according to their creative intent.
It also supports designers in their sourcing of materials, providing them with an endowment of European Flax-Linen to incorporate into their collections.
The Alliance has introduced guaranteed traceability through two certifications.
See also: Flax-Linen stands out at the Hyères Festival with Igor Dieryck and his three Fashion Prizes
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