Description
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About Ann Huybens
Ann Huybens is a Belgian designer, born in Leuven, who first studied occupational therapy in Ghent before going to the Brabant Conservatory in Tilburg, Netherlands to study dance.
She fell into fashion due to dance as she worked at Les Ballets C de La B (1987 – 1990) , both as a dancer and costume designer. This influence with a focus around the body and movement is seen in her work. She uses stitching, piping and contrasting colours to emphasise the seams that run round the body. Asymmetric fastenings, details and shapes ensure freedom of movement. Spiral skirts, skirts with neither beginning nor end wound in a spiral round the hips, and a tango dresses with long trains that can be tied up, are typical items in her collections.
Next to this she opts for natural materials that feel soft and smooth to the skin, again influenced by her background as a dancer. Allowing for fluid movements and comfort.
During her ballet career she worked as an apprentice in a garment workshop. This was all influenced by her youth where she was raised with a ‘do it yourself’ mindset.
After her internship and ballet career, Ann Hubens opened her first store ‘Double face’ (or two-sided) in 1990 in het Patershol in Ghent. End of the 1990’s she launched her jewelry collection while touring the Paris défilés in her bus, which she dubbed her mobile showroom, before opening a brick and mortar shop there in 2003 opened named ‘Cabinet du désir’ (cabinet of desires).
All pieces in Huyben’s collections can only be ordered to measure. Not only because the garments should be adapted to the specific body of the wearer, but a large part of her work was creating weddinggowns and party dresses with intricate work. Even though Huybens creates mainly for women, regardless of age, shape or size, she has presented her womenswear often on men’s bodies emphasizing the genderfluidity of it while challing conventions on masculinity.
Ann Huybens split her collections in three parts, making sections for afternoons, evenings and nights. Huybens intends this division into three sections to represent the circular course taken by a woman’s life.
In 2013 Ann was diagnosed with a braintumor which led her to start a fund, together with the King Boudewijnstichting. All the money she saved by selling dresses was invested towards financially supporting designers of any gender who promoted female friendly visions.
While Ann was fighting this exhausting battle against cancer combined with epileptic seizures, she started archiving her days in a personal diary which was released in 2017 right after her passing.
