Edmonton fashion designer Stanley Carroll has been on the North American and European fashion scenes for more than three decades, but for the past six years or so, his business model has been largely based around pop-up shops.
The Dutch-born designer has done them in Amsterdam, Belgium and here in Edmonton at traditional spaces like studios, and non-traditional ones like pubs, hair salons and outdoor party tents.
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Carroll is just back from Antwerp, Belgium, where he presented his latest collection, Cocoon, in September. The artist, who has a permanent studio workshop on the south side of Edmonton, unveiled the collection to Canadian audiences on Sunday at a pop-up shop on Whyte Avenue.
Missed out? No need to panic. Keep an eye on stanleycarroll.com and his Facebook page to find out when and where in town the next one will spring up (there will be one every month or so here this fall). Or contact him directly at info@stanleycarroll.com.
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We spoke to Carroll about his cosy new collection (he calls it the “comfort food of clothing”) of soft, shawl-collar jackets, knit dresses, mixed-print shirts and patchwork sweaters.
Q What should we know about your latest collection, Cocoon?
A We decided to call it Cocoon because I tried to draw on the feeling I get from the world around me, the uncertainty in the world on so many different levels: political, economical, safety. People want to crawl into a shell of comfort, of shutting things away a little bit and just hunkering down as the storm passes by. Through the clothes, I tried to give people that sense of comfort and ease — for lack of a better world.
Q How is it different from your other collections?
A For a long time now, I use the word “collection” very lightly. It’s an ongoing process, so it’s not like, “OK, these styles are done, stop, on we go.” It’s very much an evolutionary process rather than a revolutionary process. That said, if I were to look back over previous seasons, there was a time when there was a sort of lighthearted, positive attitude to the clothes, and I’m not saying that things are necessarily dark and sombre, but there’s a certain sense of lightheartedness that isn’t there anymore and a certain sense of inwardness.
Q What is it about pop-up shops that you like so much?
A By nature I’m non-conformist/rebellious. (Pop-up shops) suit that whole essence … where you don’t get hung up with a locked retail environment. You don’t have to go on your knees to other retailers. It’s a guerrilla-style kind of marketing where you pop up. It makes sense because it allows me to focus on the one thing that I’m better at than anything else and that is being a designer. I’m not necessarily the best retailer in the world or the best businessman. It suited and suits what we do.
Q Your designs aren’t trendy necessarily, but are you influenced by trends?
A To some extent, I’ve always been passionate about the essence of fashion. We all live in the same planet and the same universe. To some extent we’re all more or less influenced by the same thing. I’m not immune to the same things, whether it’s a musical trend or an art trend or whatever. But I think I’m at a stage in my career where if I see someone else doing it or I’ve done it, I don’t have much interest in doing it anymore. The whole idea of fitting in with the masses is something that I’ve never been (interested in) and I think that my customers aren’t (either). It’s about saying to the world: “Here I am. This is the kind of person I am.” If there’s a sad thing in fashion, it’s that it has become very homogenized, and fashion used to be the place where people could make statements about themselves and show their own true personality. People have become afraid of doing that. Fashion seems to be about status or looking like somebody else.
