Colin Horgan is a womenswear designer from Ireland whose work centers around surreal depictions of women in popular media juxtaposed against real women. Operating from a small Irish village called Ardfert, Horgan’s work has a global reach and has been seen on celebrities like Lady Gaga, Dua Lipa, and CL. We sat down with Colin to understand more about his work, his brand, and what he has planned for his future.
In your own words, who is Colin Horgan?
I would describe myself as a grounded but focused designer. As a country boy, I suppose I am quite shy to a degree like everyone might be about putting themselves on a platform so there is a level of me pushing my work to the foreground while I hide backstage observing every reaction… if any. Secretly even when pleased with an idea that is executed, sometimes for me I will dissect each element in order to process the navigation for next season. My strengths always lie in the details, application elements, and shapes that move away from what traditional is seen as a determining silhouette. I suppose in a sense I would describe myself previously as a little self-indulgent as a designer as I was creating items for an alter-ego maybe which might have added problems along the way, but I really have matured as a young designer, in particular, the last 12 months. Although my work is inspired by women in my family juxtaposed with surreal women I grew with, I always felt like my pieces created were like modes of transport to taking the wearer away from their old selves, even if only for a moment.
In descriptions about you as a designer, your work is often described with reference to “surreal women” juxtaposed against the women in your family. How does that translate into your current collection?
Growing up in a remote, sports-driven area in Ireland at that time for a young gay youth was quite limiting in explorations of culture so I always longed to create a world that combined the brave women in my own family with these fantastical women in gaming. I think there was something so fearless about these two groups of women that drew parallels but in obviously different outputs. I used to be obsessed with the gaming characters from video games like Tekken and Dead or Alive and if they were KO’ing a man – even better. I think that’s where in essence exploring the idea of clothing and focusing on a women’s narrative began when studying. I do think that although I have developed and maybe changed a lot of the noise in my work, the current collection is really spoken by the same woman from my graduate collection from the Royal College of Art, it’s just she is more ‘selective’ on what she wears now – materially speaking. I would like to think that the handwriting in the current season is a tighter, neater signature than maybe then previously.
In the past, you have spoken about how drawing served as escapism for you and that was what led you down the path of becoming a designer. Has drawing remained a constant source of inspiration for you as you have developed your practice, or has it evolved from there?
I think that definitely drawing has been a huge part of my process, but maybe I think I approach it slightly differently now. I am a cutter, but I think for me the toile is really my medium for sketching. Personally, I picked up draping and drawing as a medium to further develop ideas as I never felt they connected in my previous work. I often toile the initial idea sometimes obscure shapes but will drastically change elements and details by drawing directly onto the toile, cutting, and resewing. For me, this is really my favourite part of the process. I am happy to trial ideas right to the very last day or even adapt elements in a showpiece depending on the final fabrication and organic nature of the design. I think there can be great and powerful moments to just jumping in and surprising yourself. I am happy to just go for it instead of overthinking and stressing. Of course, I wouldn’t do it just to do it. Sometimes I purposely twist elements that should have been symmetrical. It’s quite nice to have a little imperfection in an item. It gives it an authentic feel.
Tell me more about your most recent collection, what inspired “Future Partisan”?
For me, Future Partisan was really a personal response to change and adaptation. After COVID-19 hit I really had to figure out a new route within the industry and be creatively doing many different kinds of projects to keep the business afloat, so I had been trialing getting my clothing produced in my hometown in Ireland. In 2021 it was so unclear what my path was, the fashion industry is not straightforward and changes so quickly, I started to create a plan to set up permanently in Ireland. For a while, it really was difficult to know if I had made the right decision as I was so far removed from a capital city that I was once so heavily involved in. But the more I leaned into it, the more I realised how lucky I was. Future Partisan became a driving force about a mature vision for me as a designer for the woman that the collections are led by. For a while, I felt like I was being put into one box as a designer. It was a huge challenge as although my work was being seen and worn by pop culture and celebrities there was a huge disconnect with everyday people buying because they felt like it was only for celebrities. In a sense, they were correct because my material selection was quite niche, but that year allowed me to really focus on merging my ‘surreal’ woman with easy accessibility for real women.
The colour palette in future partisan is what strikes me the most, along with the beautiful silhouettes and structural details. What was the most challenging part of pulling together this collection?
Thank you! The work really came as a passion project to really refocus on where it could go for the future wearer. I would say changing my way of thinking was a huge challenge. I had to almost retrain myself and refrain from overworking the garments which I would have done for the performers and singers. I suppose on a stage or in a music video it allowed me to be quite free and add as many elements or straps as I wanted to. I really had to access who could be wearing these clothes and the environment she might be placed in. So, it was a tough balance for me, and it was a mental argument between myself and I, even if the team were excited by it. Of course, I wouldn’t be fully selling myself to commerciality, there are moments of creativity in the collection that allow the viewer to breathe and take in while balancing the lineup with accessible elements. It became an organic process but a balanced sellable collection with great press potential pieces.
Is there a technique or skill that you always fall back on in your work that really defines your brand identity?
I am always drawn to visible and heavy topstitching. In any of my work, there is a high level of detailing with stitching. For me, it gives my signature to a piece. I would be hopeful that if someone was familiar with my work, the white stitching does give that unbranded familiarity. As well as that being a functional element to the quality of the garment, I do an aesthetic that is visually pleasing too.
Is there a skill or technique you’d like to take further in future collections or explore differently through rough experimentation?
I would love to explore more romantic senses and processes. I feel like over the past few collections I have fully embraced a hard edge to the brand that can sometimes be intimidating. I do feel like there is room for vulnerability in my world that perhaps could really be something strong and beautiful. I am starting to drift away from old readable methods and look more obscurely through the process and experimentation of the concept. I think there is a place for my women to feel resilient and romantic.
What’s next for you as a designer? Where do you see yourself taking your work in the global fashion landscape?
Right now, I am preparing the next collection for February 2022 digitally and then the digital showroom. I think for the times we are in I am extremely lucky to be doing this all from the South of Ireland in a world that is a bit removed from a Fashion Week yet digitally connected via Zoom to everyone. If anything, I do feel like a good example of not being a big city to do what you love. It does allow me to create without distractions and I know for a fact for the size of the space I have here I wouldn’t have been lucky enough to have back in London. A big element that I really want to explore with a manufacturer is shoes and bags. I think that after February my plan is to start prototyping this. There are talks and discussions around presenting my work as a part digital part physical range too which is very exciting! I have recently expanded in Paris too with a new PR agency, so I am excited to be introduced to France. I do have plans to start to work with international brands and collaborate on special collections for consumers and a big one which I am really excited to be involved in is Creative Direction for another brand, so I really can’t wait to see how everything progresses over the next few years. I am excited and doing this all from a community-based village called Ardfert in Kerry, Ireland.
Click here to see more of their Colin’s on Instagram!
