Thomasine Barnekow

From engineering to haute couture

• Among Thomasine's many creations is a collection of scented gloves
• She studied conceptual product design in Eindhoven
• She designed her first collection for a concept store in Tokyo

A photograph marked the turning point in Thomasine Barnekow’s life and career: it portrayed Michelle Lamy, wife and muse of designer Rick Owens, posing with some very impressive bracelets. “Those accessories struck me to the point that I started to imagine how I could convey that movement in a glove. That’s how my first prototype was born,” recounts the young artisan-designer in her brand new studio right next to the Louvre. Until then, Thomasine had only made gloves during a workshop at the Design Academy in Eindhoven, The Netherlands, where she decided to enrol after having spent a few months studying engineering, which she “immediately understood was not my way”.

Where

Interview

©Michael Campi

©Benjamin Taguemount

Why did you initially choose engineering?

I grew up in the Swedish countryside in a small village inhabited by very active, strong women. Some sewed, some embroidered; all had close interaction with nature. I took in everything, but I was more focused on maths than arts. That’s why I studied engineering, but I soon understood I couldn’t unleash my creativity in that.

After making that first prototype, you started working for important maisons.

The pivotal moment came in 2007, thanks to the support of Spanish designer Elisa Palomino, who was a juror in the Talent Support competition in Trieste. I first worked with Georges Morand, a master glove maker in Saint-Junien, then Agnelle and Maison Fabre, two other important Parisian institutions.

Your haute couture creations are an ode to architecture...

And to nature, I would add. They are my main sources of inspiration. I observe the floral photos by Karl Blossfeldt or the works by Oscar Niemeyer and I start to draw. I always prefer to work with leather, although I like to mix it with more unconventional materials, such as vinyl, lace and innovative textiles.

Are gloves coming back in fashion?

Until ten years ago it was virtually impossible to find gloves in a fashion magazine. In the 1980s and 90s they were swept aside by bags and shoes. Today there is a revival of the craft of the glove maker, and the attention that the press devotes to my creations fills me with pride.

Thomasine Barnekow is a master artisan: she began her career in 2008 and she started teaching in 2008

Works

©Benjamin Taguemount

©Michael Campi

©Benjamin Taguemount

©Benjamin Taguemount