March 4, 2024 |
Swedish-born and based, 2024 LVMH Prize semi-finalist Ellen Hodakova Larsson has built a brand centred around upcycling. After graduating from the Swedish School of Textiles, the designer debuted her namesake label Hodakova in 2021 with a dedication to building the first fully sustainable fashion house by choosing existing objects and transferring them into luxury items.
Pulling inspiration from a mixture of memories living in her grandmother’s home, amidst the dense forests of the Swedish countryside that surrounded her family’s farm where she grew up, the AW24 collection was an intimate family affair.
Showcased within a Parisian private gallery space with Swedish newspapers taped up to the windows – a commentary on fashion’s news consumption and ongoing trend cycles – models stepped out as Swedish classical music filled the air. There was an inside-out tartan coat worn as an evening top, a patchwork argyle knit, a vintage fur coat transformed into a skirt, and a Chesterfield sofa-inspired dress. Rigorous military-inspired silhouettes were turned into playful, timeless creations, inspired by the famed English side saddle equestrian and socialite Lady Martha Sitwell.
Reinterpretation of the designer’s family heirlooms were inescapable, though. The collection featured the repurposing of her mother’s riding boots, the crafting of tops made from her grandmother’s silver plates and dresses sculpted out of her father’s briefcases.
Hodakova signed off the 30-piece collection with a dress made entirely out of black, silky, horse racing prize ribbons. It was a banker (that’s jockey lingo for “fan-favourite”).
Photography courtesy of Hodakova.
