House of Rubber

“The purpose of sculpture is first of all the joy of the person who makes it. We must be able to feel their hand in it, their passion. Normally colour on sculpture is a distraction. But after all, why not?” “ - Germaine Richier

Marlou Breuls (1991) works and lives in the Netherlands. In 2016 she graduated Amsterdam Fashion Instituut (AMFI), after which she created her own label. 

Her signature is characterized by avant-garde use of form, based on an eye for detail and extreme tactility. She sees the human body as a foundation on which and with which she brings ideas to life. It is her way of expressing a feeling, telling a story and exploring the performative aspect of fashion. This results in a sculptural approach where unconventional use of materials and complex constructions come together.

Within her recently renewed practice House of Rubber, Marlou questions the boundaries of fashion, object, the human body and their relationship with their environment. She humanizes the object, objectifies the body and questions creative disciplines. By transcending contradictions, between inside and outside, organic and artificial, depth and surface, she wants to take the viewer into an alternative view to co-create materiality in relation to the human body in new forms. In this, interaction between the work and the viewer is intrinsic. She challenges the traditional perception of fashion and the above elements by changing the DNA and blurring their distinctive characteristics. Because what if we let go of the conventional and give in to the wonderful?

Tactility, construction and experimentation are fundamental characteristics of her makership. She does not proceed from a concept that has been meticulously mapped out in advance, but is guided by the coincidences, surprises and extremities of a material. Within this material, wonder and open-mindedness are essential, infectious ingredients. During the process, she conducts a dialogue, as it were, with the work that gradually takes shape and examines the substantive dimension of her work, which often revolves around a lack or desire for connection and intimacy.

The result remains clearly related to fashion, but manages to approach the function of fashion from different angles. House of Rubber's work grates, because the practice dares to step outside the usual paths and questions the established creative mediums. This creates an interesting tension that influences how we as makers and artists understand our discipline and what it means to be a designer, maker and artist today.