Unveiling 'Riparium' Collection and its Fashion's Evolutionary Narrative with Jordan Arthur Smith

NEXT IN FASHION: In a captivating dialogue with designer Jordan Arthur Smith, we unveil the mesmerising narrative behind the 'Riparium' collection. Rooted in a profound connection to nature and a relentless pursuit of innovation, Smith's creations offer a captivating glimpse into a world where fashion transcends mere adornment.

Drawing inspiration from the delicate interplay of light, movement, and time within the confines of enclosed environments, 'Riparium' emerges as a testament to the boundless creativity that flourishes under constraint. Smith's meticulous craftsmanship and visionary design ethos challenge conventional notions of fashion, offering garments that not only captivate the eye but also provoke introspection.

Through a seamless fusion of signature pattern-making techniques, biomimicry-inspired motifs, and modular designs, 'Riparium' blurs the boundaries between form and function, inviting wearers to embark on a journey of self-expression and environmental consciousness.

Join us as we embark on a transformative exploration of fashion's fluid evolution with 'Riparium' as our guiding light.

Can you tell us more about the inspiration behind the 'Riparium' collection and how it reflects in the design elements and themes explored?

‘Riparium’ is an exploration of light, movement, the passage of time, and transformation within constraints of an enclosed environment. This collection was meticulously crafted in an intimate setting, and serves as a testament to the creative spirit’s ability to thrive under limitations.

‘Riparium’ is derived from the ecological term for an artificial habitat cultivating an interwoven connection between land and water, representing the fluid and dynamic transition of identity and environment.

Through ‘riparium’ I wanted to invite the wearer to reflect on their personal evolution and the interaction between their intensities, and the environments they inhabit. The collection challenges traditional views on fashion, offering garments that adapt and morph, much like the riparian zones that inspired it.

The press release mentions experimentation with signature pattern making techniques. Could you elaborate on how these techniques were utilized in crafting the garments of this collection?

I focus on two extremes when it comes to patterning. The focus is either on the human form, or extrapolating it. The common connection between these two guiding concepts is the unconventional patterning that utilizes curved seams, intentionally placed throughout a garment to either compliment the body or accentuate alien structure to augment the human form.

For this collection I integrated the same design language by further exploring the curved shapes and silhouettes without seams, creating patterns initiated by sculpture and further distorting them, or removing armholes on the garments to create continuous flow from the seams.

In our previous collection I patterned a lot of pieces from non-human forms by creating sculptures in our studio that start with a base shape from a leg or an arm, and then adding strategic mass shapes to achieve the non-human forms.

This collection I expanded on creating sculptures for sleeves on jackets like the hooded jacket, and further distorting the pattern after it was patterned from the sculpture. The other thing I introduced in this collection is creating shapes in the garments without seams, such as the wet formed, vegetable tanned horse leather estuary motif on our Vest Bags.

The removal of traditional armholes and integration of long path zippers into the seamwork are highlighted as distinctive features of the collection. How do these design choices contribute to the overall aesthetic and functionality of the garments?

In previous collections I used zippers as a function to create garments that can transform into multiple different pieces. I took this further in creating a reversible coat with several zippers that can be unzipped allowing the wearer to experiment with a multitude of different ways of wearing the jacket, that completely transform the coat’s initial structure, resulting in the name, Metamorphic Coat.

Biomimicry seems to play a significant role in this collection. Could you discuss how natural forms and phenomena inspired specific pieces or design elements within 'Riparium'?

Yes I would say that most direct references seen throughout our work comes from nature. For this collection, Calla Lilies inspired the sleeves of our dress shirt, vines, inspired the continuous lines and the removal of armholes, and elements such as hand-painted hardware and logos designed to adorn each garment in forms reminiscent of shells and bones found among the natural world.

From a young child I've always been obsessed with water/ nature. My favourite books as a child were always related to learning about the natural world like encyclopedias. I grew up on the bay and spent most of my time near or in the water. I think these memories and the way I grew up have a huge impact on my design.

Recurring curved, estuary motifs and chiton plates, the dorsal shells of gumboot chiton have been a defining characteristic of our work since the beginning, and act as a connective moment across all our collections. As with every new piece, I aim to create garments that will relate from one collection to another, world-building across time within one’s wardrobe.

Modular design and blurring the lines between garment and accessory are mentioned, particularly with the introduction of the modular bag/vest hybrid. What prompted this exploration into modularity, and how does it reflect the ethos of the collection?

The idea of modularity reflects the ethos of this collection because it is one keystone concept of our brand, and one of the design principles that I focus on in every collection.

When designing a collection I sit down and work through the logistics of modularity and versatility in garment construction and how that will be achieved in each and every piece.

In previous collections we created dye methods of only applying dye to one side of the fabric and integrated this method into garments with reversible construction, and inverted french seams to create reversible pieces, and utilized additional armholes to allow versatility, seen in our 3 armhole turtleneck, Wrap Vest, and Exo puffer.

Our previous collections also focused on simplifying design down to building blocks and combining those pieces to create a full garment. This concept guided the creation of the rhizome puffers and inspired smith to think of modularity, specifically blurring the lines between garment and accessory. This led to the idea of a modular bag/ vest, a hybrid piece that is comprised of two leather bags embossed with wet formed leather over ceramic sculpture to create the brand’s signature estuary motif, and newly designed zipper pulls that have been molded and contoured to emulate sculpture and ergonomic form. The garments can be worn together or independently depending on the wearer’s needs that offer optimal functionality as both a vest, and two shoulder bags.

"Riparium" seems to challenge traditional views on fashion by offering garments that adapt and morph. How do you envision wearers engaging with these transformative pieces on a deeper level beyond just aesthetics?

Beyond aesthetics I focus on clothes that offer multiple methods of wear, to exist as multiple garments simultaneously with no right or wrong way to be styled - thus no finality of wear. This multifaceted design element results in garments that limit waste by offering versatility in the wearer’s wardrobe.

I start with this guiding concept in my design process because I want to offer a newness to garments that people can play with. I think menswear specifically is missing this styling ability, our pieces allow the wearer the opportunity to reclaim outfit construction to reflect one’s feelings by styling garments that express their individual identity through clothing in their everyday life.

What was your favourite part of shooting the lookbook? How did you like working with the team involved?

This lookbook was fitting for this collection because everything was shot in our studio/ apartment so it was very intimate. My wife and co-founder of our brand, shot all the visuals for this collection and we enlisted the help of close friends to model and assist with styling creative direction.

This is another instance that reflects the name of the collection, Riparium as the creation of this collection was formulated and executed from start to finish from home with family and my small team, basically boxed in for months in our own little world.

Write a message to your future self.

“Keep going” - Jordan

Image courtesy of @jordanarthursmithofficial

Clothing designed and styled by @jordanarthursmithofficial

Photography by @mothscradle

Interview by @danieleverse

Models: @icygemstone @zegalba

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