If you've seen Opening Ceremony’s Fall/Winter 2014 collection, you'll know we took a hands-on approach to incorporating all things Belgium, from the country's architecture to the city of Antwerp's founding myth. It should come as no surprise, then, that we tapped Martijn Vogelaers and Deborah Bloemen, the power couple behind Antwerp-based art-direction studio Uber and Kosher, to design a series of graphic T-shirts, sweatshirts, and hoodies for the collection. Opening Ceremony FW14 Remix, as the collaboration is called, fuses manual processes with digital design, drawing on one of Belgium’s chief exports, '90s house music album art, as inspiration. We caught up with the couple to talk all things Antwerp.
Shop Opening Ceremony Collection men's here
EMILY MANNING: You two have been working together for over ten years now; that’s amazing! How did you meet?
MARTIJN VOGELAERS AND DEBORAH BLOEMEN: We met on a terrace on a warm summer night here in Antwerp. Through mutual friends we ended up together at the same table. It was immediately clear that we shared a lot of common interests, one of them being each other.
I know you two currently live in Antwerp, where you both attended university. How has the city changed since your college years?
We believe that our relationships with the city changed, not so much the city itself. We were both pretty active in nightlife when we were students and a few years after; we both designed artwork for club nights and Martijn also organized and DJed underground parties on a regular basis. Having children and our own company unavoidably diminished our nightlife activity. Take notice, though: we said "diminish," not "end." Partying is an essential part of life, we think!
What are your favorite places in Antwerp?
We really enjoyed the Ra13 when it still was in Antwerp and still enjoy visiting it when we're in Paris. At the moment, The Recollection Store is our favorite, which is in de Kloosterstraat, a cozy street packed with antique and vintage shops and Parisian brasseries. Also de Graanmarkt and Houben. For good food, we like to go to Le John, De Kleine, and Bourla. The area where we live in Antwerp, Zurenborg, is also jam-packed with charming brasseries and restaurants, so we're regularly hanging, lunching, dining, and meeting with friends and clients in our neighborhood.
Can you speak more to the logic behind your
Shop Opening Ceremony Collection men's here
EMILY MANNING: You two have been working together for over ten years now; that’s amazing! How did you meet?
MARTIJN VOGELAERS AND DEBORAH BLOEMEN: We met on a terrace on a warm summer night here in Antwerp. Through mutual friends we ended up together at the same table. It was immediately clear that we shared a lot of common interests, one of them being each other.
I know you two currently live in Antwerp, where you both attended university. How has the city changed since your college years?
We believe that our relationships with the city changed, not so much the city itself. We were both pretty active in nightlife when we were students and a few years after; we both designed artwork for club nights and Martijn also organized and DJed underground parties on a regular basis. Having children and our own company unavoidably diminished our nightlife activity. Take notice, though: we said "diminish," not "end." Partying is an essential part of life, we think!
What are your favorite places in Antwerp?
We really enjoyed the Ra13 when it still was in Antwerp and still enjoy visiting it when we're in Paris. At the moment, The Recollection Store is our favorite, which is in de Kloosterstraat, a cozy street packed with antique and vintage shops and Parisian brasseries. Also de Graanmarkt and Houben. For good food, we like to go to Le John, De Kleine, and Bourla. The area where we live in Antwerp, Zurenborg, is also jam-packed with charming brasseries and restaurants, so we're regularly hanging, lunching, dining, and meeting with friends and clients in our neighborhood.
Can you speak more to the logic behind your