The brand's 25th anniversary collection celebrates ‘Love und Friendship Since 1999’
Baum und Pferdgarten co-founders Rikke Baumgarten and Helle Hestehave aren’t necessarily prone to looking back, but it’s a tricky thing to avoid when one’s brand is celebrating its 25th anniversary. “It’s actually crazy to think about,” says Baumgarten, noting that when the brand started the duo were still sending faxes. “When you look back, it’s like another life, and sometimes you feel like you’ve been living two or three lives already because things are changing so much.” Fittingly, they dub the collection ‘Love und Friendship Since 1999’.
To mark the occasion, the design duo took a look at the brand’s DNA. Throughout these 25 years, in which the brand evolved from its pouf-sleeved print-heavy aesthetic (one that defined Copenhagen fashion for about a decade) to a slimmer, sportier silhouette, the prevailing idea is opposition. Opposition by way of juxtaposing fabrics, power-clashing prints or finding, say, a masculine tailored pant rendered in delicate lace. Here, this is most literally realised in a classic pinstripe blazer, made modern with a denim-like fabric trimmed along the bottom or a mid-length sequinned skirt, met with classic pin-striping in the rear.
This, however, is hardly a walk down memory lane, but rather a blueprint for how Baum und Pferdgarten might soldier on for another decade or two. In many ways it’s a quieter collection – muted prints, structured fabrics. “It’s much more calm,” says Hesehave. “It’s kind of a new direction for us.” This more subdued approach is evident in the show itself, which forgoes bells and whistles to spotlight – literally – the clothes. Walking the runway are old friends of the brands – colleagues and collaborators – joined by the young models who could be walking Baum runways for seasons to come.
So what is the special sauce that has kept Baum und Pferdgarten relevant for all these years? A deep-felt, mutual respect between its founders – who are dear friends first – for one. But also a foundation of craftsmanship and love of design. “It’s that heritage – we come from an old tradition of design school where we were taught everything about making clothes. We know exactly how every pocket should be done, every stitch,” says Baumgarten. “We started by hand. Now we do it on a computer, of course, but when we think about that, it’s a great heritage to move on from.”
See the full Baum und Pferdgarten AW24 collection below:
Baum und Pferdgarten - AW24
