Dutch designer Jan Taminiau created a furore during the opening of Amsterdam Fashion Week in February 2011 with his couture collection ‘Irradiance’. All the fabrics were woven in the TextielLab. One of his outfits, made from glow-in-the-dark yarn with a matching mask and high heels, was acquired by the TextielMuseum.
The ‘Irradiance’ collection is about hiding but also about revealing and changing, as time ticks by. The lighting during the fashion show was dark, the colours white, silver and grey against black. By using glow-in-the-dark yarns, the designs appeared to light up. Baroque patterns – a fascinating source of inspiration for Taminiau because of their interplay of lines – are at the heart of the design.
Taminiau had already decided that he would use reflective and glow-in-the-dark effects for his 2011 spring collection when he started working in the weavery in the TextielLab. He also wanted the dresses to be double woven. After being removed from the loom as a flat object, they were unfolded to create a three-dimensional garment.
Taminiau (Goirle, 1975) graduated with a bachelor’s degree from the Academy of Art and Design in Arnhem in 2001. His final-year project earned him the prestigious ‘Roos Gesink Award’ for the most talented student. He went on to earn a master’s from the Fashion Institute of Arnhem in 2003. Since 2007, he has shown his collections twice a year during Paris Fashion Week. The guiding principle in his work, which is expressed through his label JANTAMINIAU, is concealing and revealing the female body. His couture dresses are compelling, poetic and surprising. Although a refined, conceptual undertone is always present, he never loses sight of the elegant, feminine and wearable form. Style icons such as The Netherlands’ Queen Máxima and Lady Gaga have worn his creations. His work can be found in the collections of the Gemeentemuseum Den Haag, the Zuiderzeemuseum Enkhuizen and the TextielMuseum.
