Merel Wicker

Biography

Merel Wicker, together with current business partner Kim Leemans, graduated from the fashion department of the Gerrit Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam in 2001. It was during their study that they discovered the strength of cooperation. They have been partners ever since. Working as freelance fashion designers they decided in 2007 it was time to start their own multidisciplinary studio : LEW by Leemans & Wicker. They work with local and global clients in corporate fashion and design their own contemporary projects. Their latest on-going, ever-growing project is called ‘Pausenclown’, which is a research and intuitive experimental platform. Their goal is to change the narrative of the ever-changing Fashion in a positive manner by following social and sustainable values and celebrate the process of creation.

During the Design Innovation Sessions, Merel, together with Elise van der Laan, will introduce Care & Repair: a new project that shines a light on a fashion system in need of attention. By zooming in on the everyday practices of users, tailors, brands, and designers, the project explores how new synergies can be designed between them. What does it really mean to care — or to repair — in the context of fashion?

Collaboration partners: ArtEZ university of the arts, Hogeschool van Amsterdam, Amsterdam International School of Business, morgenmakers, Comuun, Mended, Fabriek Fris, Leemans & Wicker, Milieu Centraal, Modint, Miele, Fornet, Livera, America Today, Le Nouveau Chef, New Order Of Fashion, Modestraat, House of Denim.