Natures of Conflict

Roland Barthes once said that mode is the act of playing with the question of “Who am I?”.
To us all, the unaltered form of our being, the true essence of ourselves is a deep mystery. As the ever-changing air, the answer to the question of “Who am I?”, slips away as soon as we seem to catch it. It is a search, every human being is venturing into, while at the same time trying to become someone other than themselves. All the more we strive to get a hold of our essence, our unaltered core being. This search within us is what keeps fashion in motion.

Nora Berger was born in Vienna, her father is a graphic designer and her mother is an art teacher. Under her artistic parents, she was raised with an unrestricted outlook, which allowed her to flourish in an extensive aesthetic environment. Kathrin Lugbauer was born in Lower Austria with her father being a craftsman and undertaker, and her mother a german-teacher. At the age of 15, she spent two months tracing the same route, which Columbus took to navigate by ship from Spain to Venezuela. While studying fashion at the University of Applied Arts, Vienna under Veronique Branquinho and Raf Simons she met Nora Berger, and together they established Natures of Conflict. Apart from being born in the same country, both designers have little in common. What draws them together to the extent of building a label together, is their shared feeling of being out of place. Along with the tides of economic entities, dominating the world’s fashion industry, society practically demands women to wear low–quality, replaceable outfits that remind us of mediocrity. Yet nothing is further apart from our true core being that seeks expression. “Who am I?” This, however, seems to be the nagging uneasiness that countless women of today’s diverse society encounter. Rather, it is an issue met by innumerable people, regardless of their sex.

Natures of Conflict forms the unit of these two women. The most important part of their process of clothes-making is the picking of material. They distance themselves from outlandish designs and focus on unique compositions, created by the balance of high-quality fabrics, which, with their calm and steady nuances, almost seem to be something very intimate. On top of it, the two designers are fond of the functionality, which classical work attire and uniforms allow. The delicate details of uniforms and also their straightforward design, have a big influence on NoC’s designs. The two designers themselves seem to be antinomies, contradictions within themselves, that provide each other with antitheses that dynamically clash and forge creative impulses. Each other’s unrestricted perception of the world, trying to be at times more and at other times less themselves and expressing it by wearing clothes. If we do not forget to purely experiment and make the effort of choosing, then our future cannot be anything but good.

The Seasonal
The Seasonal is based on the values of freedom and sustainability. It is our suggestion of an outfit with the potential to follow its owner through every aspect of their life.

Wardrobe
The Seasonal represents the pursuit of building a slowly expanding, elementary wardrobe consisting of timeless, versatile garments that transcend short-lived trends. The Seasonal stands for flawless fabrications and high-quality weaves meant to be owned and worn for years. It is a return to quality in design and material.

Responsibility
The Seasonals are created in the traditional way of working, conscious of the social and environmental responsibility, to have as little impact as possible on the planet. The Seasonals are made by seamstresses in Slovakia and Hungary one piece at a time. They are solely produced to order to avoid excess waste and overproduction. The Seasonals might be delivered in reused cardboard boxes, because a living tree is by far more fantastic, than a brand-new cardboard box.

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