AT 1812, EVERY DESIGN BEGINS WITH A THOUGHT THAT DEMANDS TO BE EXPLORED. THAT SPARK MUST BE SHAPED INTO FORM, TRANSLATED INTO A THREE-DIMENSIONAL IDEA AND REFINED UNTIL IT SPEAKS CLEARLY. THIS CYCLE OF EXPERIMENTATION, CORRECTION AND ADJUSTMENT IS THE ESSENCE OF OUR CREATIVE PROCESS.
EACH COLLECTION BEGINS WITH THE JOURNAL — IMAGES, REFERENCES AND TEXTURES GATHERED INTO BOARDS. THESE BOARDS ACT AS GUIDES, COLLAGES OF THOUGHT AND FEELING. ONE MAY HOLD COLOUR REFERENCES, ANOTHER FABRIC SWATCHES, ANOTHER PHOTOGRAPHS OR PAINTINGS. THEY ARE NOT RIGID BUT FLUID, CHANGING CONSTANTLY AS IDEAS SHARPEN. WE DO NOT FOLLOW REPORTS OR FORECASTS, NOR DO WE SET OUT TO CHASE WHAT IS LABELLED FASHIONABLE. WE DESIGN ONE COLLECTION PER YEAR. TRUE DESIGN DOES NOT IMITATE. IT LISTENS, IT QUESTIONS, IT RESPONDS.
NO VISION EXISTS WITHOUT RISK. TO FOLLOW INSTINCT OFTEN MEANS STEPPING AWAY FROM EXPECTATION. THE MOST DEFINING WORK IN FASHION HAS ALWAYS BEEN BORN FROM RISK — A SILHOUETTE, A PROPORTION, A MOOD THAT FELT UNFAMILIAR YET INEVITABLE ONCE SEEN. FOR 1812, THE CREATIVE PROCESS IS NOT ABOUT TRENDS, SHORTCUTS OR FORMULAS. IT IS ABOUT HOLDING TO THAT RHYTHM OF THOUGHT, MATERIAL, SKETCH AND REFINEMENT — A DISCIPLINE OF VISION THAT BECOMES VISIBLE IN EVERY PAIR OF SHOES WE MAKE.
