PORCELAIN BODY

The Porcelain Body is Lisa Konno's first solo museum exhibition in Museum JAN. This work questions the borders between fashion as a liberating form of self-expression, and, as a form of oppression. Konno uses archetypical female characters from both Dutch and Japanese history to expose the absurdity and contradictions in ideals of beauty. In a video installation and a series of objects that are somewhere between garments and sculpture, she demonstrates how our ideas about beauty are subject to time and culture. Konno combines, for the first time in her work, both textile and porcelain, stimulated by her residency in Arita (Japan). As someone with both Dutch and Japanese roots this period doubled as a personal quest.

MUSEUM JAN
CREATIVE RESIDENCY ARITA

NOBU BABA HENK BOOK

This book combines the process and stories of our film trilogy NOBU BABA HENK (together with writer and director Sarah Blok). In our films on migrant fathers we found common ground in our love for stories, told in a lighthearted tone, yet doing justice to their complex and socially involved subjects.

NOBU, BABA and HENK let us into their homes and hearts and taught us about human resilience, showed us the beauty and challenges of navigating two worlds and raised the question what culture actually is.

In this concluding book each film gets introduced with reference images, design sketches and text fragments of film scripts, before showing the finished films through subtitled filmstills. All carefully selected and designed by Marius Schwarz.

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NOBU BABA HENK
Lisa Konno and Sarah Blok
Edited and designed by Marius Schwarz
Release date: 22 October 2022
Price: €34,95

HENK

Henk is a magic-realistic portrait of the Surinamese-Dutch caretaker of the Rietveld Art Academy in Amsterdam. Dressed in a fashion collection inspired by his life, Henk presents us his unique view on migration and success. His total absence of urge for recognition makes him an exception in this day and age, and more importantly in the domain of the art academy, where students strive to be seen.

After NOBU and BABA, HENK is the last and third part of the trilogy about fathers in the Netherlands with a migration background. A filmmaking collaboration between director Sarah Blok and designer Lisa Konno.

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Produced by VPRO & Studio Ruba
Photography: Coco Olakunle
Cinematography: Abel van Dijk
Models: Henk Shakison, Luca Shakison, Valentino Shakison, Yvette Dashorst

CLOGS

An installation made for the entry hall of the Zuiderzeemuseum inspired by wooden shoes, a symbol of Dutch history. Seven portraits hanging as a 3D mobile show crowns and masks made from different varieties of wooden shoes. From giftshop versions to the modern plastic Crocs. The work shows how the function of the clog has changed from practical object to the touristic symbol of Dutch identity. Each portrait represents a culture that has, either willingly or forced, contributed to Dutch heritage.

Photography: Peggy Kuiper
Curator: Anne van der Zwaag
Styling: Pascal Joel Weber
Make-up: Christel Man

GOODWILL DUMPING

The bizarre industry around donated clothing

What happens when the lid of the container slams shut and our donated clothes embark on their global journey? Because of its massive scale and numerous facets, the charity industry processing them is a bizarre operation. It is the butterfly effect: a seemingly small action like giving away your old T-shirt sparks off a process with great consequences, for example for the industry in countries where it ends up.

This stylised documentary for BNNVARA shows the consequences of our benevolence.

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Director: Teddy Cherim
Fashion/Concept: Lisa Konno
Production: Cake Film Cinematography: Thijmen Doornik

BABA

A stylized portrait of a Turkish immigrant

BABA is the second edition of an ongoing multi-disciplinary project in collaboration with writer and director Sarah Blok, part one being NOBU. The collection, the photographs and the short film play with both Turkish and Dutch aesthetic cliches. Ceylan Utlu a.k.a BABA is the Turkish father of Serin Utlu. Questions about the role of migration in his life, their father/daughter relationship, loneliness and adaptation form the base of the story. The collection is inspired by items out of BABA’s wardrobe, such as a checked button down shirt and symbolism out of his life: A papaver flower symbolising his hometown Pörnek, his love for music and poetry in the saz and his own face as a brooch to mark his stubbornness. The rug is used as a symbol of Orientalism, covered with wool prints illustrating his personal identity on top of what is perceived as Turkish.

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Director: Sarah Blok
Fashion/Concept: Lisa Konno
Production: Boondocs
Photography: Laila Cohen

NOBU

A stylized portrait of a Japanese immigrant

NOBU is inspired by Lisa Konno’s father: Nobuaki Konno. In this film she asks him about cultural differences while he wears the collection she made for him. The short film made with director Sarah Blok combines aesthetics with humour and social engagement with optimism. The collection reflects on Dutch and Japanese identity, caricaturizes cultural misunderstandings and the hype about Japan and at the same time draws an intimate portrait of her father as an immigrant. The designs are based on items of Nobu’s closet such as his old promo T-shirts, vintage kimonos and his favourite raincoat. The collection purposely exaggerates aesthetic cliches that are often used when designers are inspired by Japan: the decor includes a field of over-sized origami tulips and kimono-flowers were used as patches on T-shirts promoting Karate championships.

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Director: Sarah Blok
Fashion/Concept: Lisa Konno
Photography: Laila Cohen

YOURS TRULY

Yours Truly is a project that was presented during Amsterdam Fashion Week in 2016. The collection invites you to be part of the process of making a garment. After the show the pattern package of an item in the collection became available. By selling an idea instead of a finished garment the project aims to gain back value for clothing by involving the wearer with the production of their wardrobe. The key material in this collection were highly recognisable printed scarfs, re-interpeted to create new and eclectic garments without wasting any textiles.

Photography: Team Peter Stigter, Peggy Kuiper

FOR THE WORKERS

An anti-sweatshop statement

In January 2015 Lisa Konno made her Amsterdam Fashion Week debut with her For the workers collection. This collection aimed to not only create awareness about the circumstances in the fast fashion industry but also to contribute to ideas on how to create fashion in a socially and environmentally sustainable way.

Pictures of the Bangladesh factory disaster were digitally printed on the garments in an abstract way. The fabrics were adapted in a way that turned the harrowing images into non-figurative aesthetic prints. A visual metaphor for fashion’s way of hiding the ugly parts of the industry. Repurposed striped men’s shirts formed the main material of the collection.

Photography: Tomek Dersu Aroon, Team Peter Stiger