Combining the over-the-top vibes from both street and red carpet wear, Michael Michalsky adds flash to Berlin's fashion scene. The Hamburg-born and London-trained designer earned his chops with Levis, Adidas and Y-3 before 2006, when he founded his own ready-to-wear line in Berlin. Here, he discusses with us the pragmatic and decadent heritage of his brand and Berlin.
Ana Finel Honigman: How does your work relate to the rest of what happens here?
Michael Michalsky: I have a different starting point from the other designers. The mantra of my collection, from day one, is “real clothes for real people.” That is where I come from. That is where I want to go. I want to see a lot of people wearing my clothes in a lot of different ways. When I show a collection, I am just offering styling tips. In that collection, there are all the items that I think people should have. There are some items that are dramatic but there is always a strong sportswear influence and a strong denim influence. I think that is how people dress. They combine tailoring with these things. It’s what they do.
AFH: That sounds sensible.
MM: I have always had a sensible approach. In the end, my collections are always about sustainability. When I first started people weren’t getting it. They would say “that’s a nice collection and a nice show
and blah, blah, blah….but, it’s so wearable.”
AFH: How are you defining sustainability?
MM: Wearable. After the big economic crisis and crash, everyone else is trying to make it wearable too. So, I can’t have been too wrong. People want an investment in their wardrobe. They want a brand with a
history and a brand with authenticity. They want a tradition and a product. They want to wear it until it falls apart. They don’t want to chuck it out because it’s too high-fashion.
AFH: Right. Are you pro-H&M then?
MM: I think it’s great. It’s like a macro-trend. All these big vertical
brands have been hiring designers for years now. In a sense, that is killing extreme fashion. Why buy something for 4,000 Euro when you can buy something that looks similar for 99? The best example is when Balmain first did those crazy shoulders, which I absolutely loved, it was so fashion-forward and over the top. But when you looked at it in real life, those jackets were 2,500-4,000[euros]. But, before they were even out, those jackets were in Zara for 99[euros]. I thought “right on.” Why should a young person spend that kind of money? Look at Vogue now. They mix it up. They have vintage with evening and denim with new. That’s how it’s going to happen.
AFH: So, what is the point of a fashion week then? What’s the purpose of a catwalk show?
MM: That’s a very good point. This is my personal point of view, everyone has the same view, but I think there are two different camps now. There is the camp from the past. There are these dinosaurs who we all know. They sit at the front row. But then there are the new generation and they write blogs. They know what real fashion is about.
AFH: Which is what?
MM: Real fashion is what is happening in the clubs and on the street. We are so interested in youth-culture and that is why there are so many people from around the word here now. That is the justification. When you are a young brand, and I count myself as a young brand, a show can be very important because it generates a lot of publicity. That publicity can be positive or negative, it really doesn’t matter.
AFH: It doesn’t?
MM: At the end of the day, no. As long as you’re being put out there. Young brands just don’t have advertising money. Publicity is the only chance to get your name across. It is the only way to create desire. When you create desire, then people go to the shop and ask “do you have Michalsky.” It is a showcase for your creativity.
AFH: Why did you decide to team up for StyleNite with other Berlin brands? Why did you select lala Berlin and Kaviar Gauche for the first event? What is the compatibility component?
MM: There is no compatibility, which I really like. I picked the brands that I liked best that season. I always liked lala from a long time ago. They can be opposite to me. Maybe, one season, I will pick street wear brands. Maybe the next will be couture. Whatever tickles my fancy. I wanted to give the brands that I like a platform. It was a very selfish thing. But I plan to make it more exclusive from now on. I will invite 800 people instead of thousands. I don’t want to have people who just come for a glass of free champagne and leave complaining that they didn’t get eight free glasses. People complain too much in this city.
AFH: Do you feel that you’re getting sufficient critical feedback here? Is there a disconnect between you and the German media?
MM: No. I think that one thing working in my favor in Germany is that they neglected bringing up a younger generation of designers. The designers who we know here are all our childhood heroes like Joop!, Jil Sanders or Karl Lagerfeld. But after that, there should have been an even bigger group of designers but they weren’t there. I get a lot of attention because I am here and I understand that fashion is a
combination of things.
AFH: Do you ever take criticism to heart? Do you incorporate critics’concerns into your thinking when considering an upcoming collection?
MM: At the end of the day, fashion is about expressing a subjective opinion. There is no standard for what is a good collection or a bad collection. There is an old tribe of opinion-leading people and some are good. But they are not always right. It is better to get the view from the bloggers. If you look at my collections, there has been a steady development. It is cool to be a little company because I am
flexible. But I am not exactly taking in feedback from critics. Retailers are more important than if a famous fashion editor had a bad day and decides “because I don’t look good in beige, then I do not
like the collection in beige.”
AFH: What about the international press? Do you care about their opinions? Do you find them a little patronizing and are you frustrated when they keep getting annoyed that they didn’t land in Paris?
MM: The international attention hasn’t been too big in Berlin. You’ve done good stuff. A few others. I do my own thing in China. But the biggest problem is that people keep comparing stuff to other stuff. This will never be Milano. It will never be Paris or New York. But I think that Berlin should develop its profile. Fashion in the 21st century is about denim, tailoring, couture and all. I think that the only place to do this convincingly is Berlin. With Bread & Butter and Premium here. The music culture here makes it the mecca of raw energy. The art and clubs and sex mean that it’s not Paris but it should never be like that. Who ever communicated that has made a mistake. Berlin is its own thing. You can’t compare it to things going on for decades. New York started with seven shows in the tent and showrooms. Give us time and create. Berlin is the geographical heart of Europe.
AFH: It is definitely the soul, if not the heart.
MM: Russia and China—we have all those eyes. Germany is the only place, though, where the designers aren’t organized.
AFH: That’s the problem. There isn’t a council.
MM: It’s a historical problem. Germany was separated, so a lot of the fashion stuff moved West. Before WWII, it was in Berlin.
AFH: What about this Munich Fashion Week thing?
MM: It’s a waste of energy and will be a big flop. It’s territorial; it’s stupid. That’s the problem of not being in a centralized country. But here, you have media in Hamburg, the marketing in Dusseldorf and
everything scattered. The big brands are in the middle of nowhere because they stemmed from brands that were fashion brands. Puma or Boss, all had historic contexts in other areas before they became fashion brands through youth and street-culture. We are lucky to always be what we are.
AFH: Your boys seem more representative of your brand’s ethos than the girls. The girls add more of a dream-factor, but the boys seem more sports wear and street. Who is this Ken to your Barbie?
MM: When designing men’s wear and women’s wear, I think that the boys should be the boyfriend of the girl. All the girls who I know, when they go out, they dress up, but during the day they slum it. They might
have a job or some kids. They don’t want to walk about in ten-inch heels, so the range of possibilities with women is greater. With the boys, I want to keep it real and not too over-the-top. Then it becomes unrealistic. In my world, there are super-glamorous girls. But their boyfriends all wear jeans and maybe a jacket with a tee-shirt.
AFH: Why does the boyfriend have a girlfriend?
MM: The boyfriend can also have a boyfriend. But I keep the same thinking there too. When I did the collection in the church about sex and religion, I added some S&M references which are so obvious in Berlin everywhere. But I notice in gay life too that being gay is becoming normal.
AFH: Normal? It’s becoming domestic.
MM: And a lot of heterosexual boys these days look gayer than gay boys.
AFH: Does that worry you? Is something vital getting lost? Are you
concerned that Berlin is just becoming generally more domestic?
MM: No. I think someone is really cool when they wear really classical clothes. They are above and beyond fashion. You’re much more outrageous when wearing a suit and tie than with three-thousand
tattoos and piercings.
AFH: I have a fetish for Patrick Bateman.
MM: Yes. All those things that were made to create individuality are not so individual anymore. You’re much more an individual now if you’re just real.
AFH: It’s hip to be square. But what about the whole Cabaret image of Berlin?
MM: I love Cabaret. My life is a Cabaret. But I always love that. I am
starting to do costumes too.
AFH: These references are definitely getting cooler. What’s Lady Gaga
if not for Andrew Lloyd Webber?
MM: She had her first concert ever outside the US at my show. She has
become a real friend and everytime I see her, she says “Michalsky, he
was the first person to believe in me.”
AFH: You were right. Are you going to keep plucking talents?
MM: I don’t want to be a talent agent. But I want to give a platform to people who I admire. What stimulates me most is music and youth culture.
AFH: What about how you promote yourself? You’re everywhere and people know you. Was this a strategy or are you, as celebrity, separate from you as the brand?
MM: It was definitely a stategy. As a young label, I cant have big ads. So, I am my own ad. People know me and they want to know more. I am lucky to be an extrovert. Other designers might be shy but I want to be out. I am who I am and the clothes are me.
[Images: Michael Michalsky was photographed at the Michalsky offices, by Maxime Ballesteros]
