Amsterdam, 2025. Collection 73, My Own Wardrobe, marks solo debut of my brand (PAPA)YORICK. After several years working within collective settings, collaborations, and custom projects, this collection represents my first fully independent body of work.​

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COLLECTION DEVELOPMENT

The collection is built up from an unconventional method. During a prolonged period of illness, I turned to to my own wardrobe. Not only as a source of inspiration, but as the actual material.  Worn, torn, and stained pieces carrying lived experiences, characters, and personal history. Instead of coming up with a clear preconceived concept of shapes, ideas and colours, it was developed with no defined intentions.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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This return to my wardrobe examines two central questions. What are the minimum conditions needed to call something a fashion collection? And how far can authorship of a fashion label go without new production? I decided to work exclusively with what was already present in my bedroom: clothing from my wardrobe and a box of large metal office clips, thereby disregarding the idea of producing something new. 

Friends were used as muses. Garments were draped, clipped, layered, and reshaped directly on the body. Nothing was sewn or cut. Imperfections stayed visible. Using this method, nearly 300 looks were created. These looks functioned as a mapping tool rather than finished outcomes, forming the conceptual and visual foundation of the collection.

 

In the second phase, experimentation made way for translation. From 300 experimental looks, the task was to distill a clear and readable collection of 25 looks. Together with my team, we selected, collaged, and morphed elements into defined silhouettes. Two principles guided every decision. The continuous use of the clipping method and the preservation of the fantasy created through this construction process of using my own clothing.  To structure the collection for the viewer, it was divided into five segments. Farmers, sailors, pirates, maidens, and aristocrats. Each group was defined through specific colours, patterns, and materials, allowing character to be read immediately through clothing.

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​​​​​​BRANDING AND POSITIONING

Branding was approached as a deliberate component of the project. Rather than following a traditional debut strategy focused on immediate production, visibility, and hype pieces, the collection was positioned through restraint: the craving for the out of reach.

Mystery was used as an asset. The decision to withhold information, limit access, and no intent for production for this collection was intentional. The aim was to create desire by absence of clear in-your-face branding rather than saturation, and to invite curiosity around what the label stands for before defining it fully.

In the period leading up to the show social media activity was used mainly to provoke curiosity rather than explain. Invitations were personal. The public location of the show was announced only three hours in advance. This strategy allowed the project to spread organically while maintaining control over its narrative.

After the show, garments were not loaned out to stylists unless within direct collaboration. This decision reinforced the temporary nature of the collection and challenged conventional expectations of access and circulation. Press followed, including interviews with Crush Fanzine, Include, and Dazed Magazine. These moments were used to reflect rather than oversell, helping define how the label positions itself moving forward.

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​​​​FASHION SHOW

The show took place in an empty corner store in central Amsterdam. Two large windows framed the space. The runway was built along the windows inside, turning the interior into a stage and the street into the audience area.  Floor to ceiling curtains, sponsored by Cartier, referenced a bedroom-like operatic setting and linked directly back to the origin of the collection. The audience gathered outside, quickly filling the street. Large speakers were installed shortly before the show and show notes were handed out among the crowd.
 

As the show began, the surrounding area came to a halt. Cars stopped. The tram paused. Passersby gathered. People leaned out of windows and balconies across the street. The soundtrack filled the neighbourhood as the models moved inside, visible yet untouchable, suspended between interior fantasy and public reality, hinting back to the origin of the collection.

Collection 73 operates between fantasy and reality. Between exposure and restraint. Between clothing as a memory: not being able to touch it, but forever engraved.