Whyred—the Indie Superlabel

Whyred is all about Modism, which publicist Peter Meaden (1941-1978) defined as “clean living under difficult circumstances.”

Undergirded by art and music, the Whyred twist on Modism entails sartorial tailoring in the great metropolis for fashion-conscious urban dwellers.

Founded in 1999 by several friends—Roland Hjort, Lena Patriksson Keller and Jonas Clason—Whyred drew its name from chief designer Roland Hjort’s grandfather, Sven “X,” who was a Swedish artist:

Known for his use of a wide variety of colors, Sven was once asked in a radio interview about his favorite color. “Red,” he retorted. “Why red,” the journalist questioned. “Well, blue then,” the artist replied.

For spring/summer 2011, Whyred features birds in flight—a symbol of hope and dreams portrayed by multi-colored and -textured plumage.

The collection then plunges us to the darkest depths of the ocean and upward again as rays of light pierce the surface in an resurrection-like experience.

Visit the whole collection here.

Photo Property of Berns Salonger and Copyright Kristian Löveborg, Courtesy Mercedes Benz Fashion Week.

Why Red? by Whyred

Swedish painter and sculptor Sven X-et Erixson (1899-1970) started his career as an apprentice at the age of 14. Known for his use of a wide variety of colors, Sven was once asked in a radio interview about his favorite color. “Red,” he retorted. “Why red,” the journalist questioned. “Well, blue then,” the artist replied.

Like art, fashion should never be one-dimensional. No one understands this concept better than Sven X-et Erixson’s grandson, Roland Hjort, who has fused the two worlds of art and apparel in Whyred, which, combines the simplicity of postmodern aesthetics to the classic icons of the 1960’s.

The Whyred man of the 2009 fall/winter collection can be depicted as calm and cool of an analytic nature that surfaces from a collage of cubist techniques and the modernist styles of Swedish furniture designer, Axel Einar Hjorth. Realism and abstraction are brought together to create a source of conflicting tension between conservatism and the avant-garde, which play on the motif that opposites attract.

The 2010 spring/summer collection returns the Whyred man to his roots in the pop culture of the nineties, highlighting specific parts of the masculine body and flirting with the bold monochrome spatial images of Peter Greenway’s most successful film, “The Cook, the Thief, His Wife & Her Lover.”

Launched in 1999, Whyred is sold in 230 stores of 21 countries and runs an online shop. Check out the sales now!

Photo by Bengt Oberger Portrait of Sven X-et Erixson, Copyleft Wikipedia.
Slideshow 2010 s/s collection Copyright Whyred.