Heard with the ears of today

IG: I'm a blank slate when it comes to the Vienna Opera Ball. Of course I have seen pictures of it. Not knowing too much about its history and traditions makes me think and motivates me to approach the task with an open mind. I am interested in searching for something that I don’t yet know. 

IG: It is often mosaic pieces (an encounter, an opportunity, a conversation) and coincidences that bring something together. A piece of the puzzle that fits. Even though I don’t work as a costume designer, the stage is not unfamiliar to me. There are certainly connections to a fashion show on the runway—both are about presence and impact. Even if our professions don’t seem directly related, they are both “impossible” endeavours that involve immense exposure. From the very first sentences we exchanged, it was clear to me that Martin Schläpfer and I were a great match. I had already dealt with questions such as “What is movement? What is dance? What can a piece of clothing do?”, but initially in a more unspecific way. Then came Martin Schläpfer’s commission, and I was able to bring something to maturity that had already been sparked on a side stage. From the very first sentences we exchanged, it was clear to me that we were a good match. Does this have something to do with our origins in Appenzell? Are there similar roots or influences in the way you look at things, the way you approach things, the attitude you develop? 

IG: At best, the costumes trigger something in the choreographer. I had the image of a huge ballroom in front of me and the idea that you have to fill this space. It needs volume. At the centre of my design are trousers. Everyone, men and women, wears trousers. That is atypical for an opera ball. I always think in terms of construction. Men’s trousers are far more complex to design than a skirt. In Vienna, these are “wing trousers”. Volume and a rather bulky material give them a sculptural character. They capture the movements of the dancers and amplify them. Light and reflection also play a major role – and what happens when you move.

IG: The Kaiserwalzer has a grandeur of sound that has touched all listeners for over 130 years. At the Opera Ball, people from today dance to this music from back then. For my work, too, I consciously listened to the Kaiserwalzer as a person from today. With today’s ears. For me it is important to work from the present because traditions change too. I am not interested in creating a counterproposal, but rather in finding the right balance for such a great piece – a contemporary solution that integrates seamlessly.

IG: The costumes would only truly be sustainable if the ensemble could dance in them not just once, but a hundred times. There is so much talk about sustainability, and a lot of it is exploited for marketing purposes. But most people no longer really understand what it means to create a product or to consume sustainably. Of course, producing the pieces locally is sustainable. For me, “placing value” on something is about a fundamental attitude towards how one approaches the process. What I find truly valuable is knowing the people involved throughout the entire production chain. Sustainability is a fundamental way of life.

IG: I don’t create couture, meaning made-to-measure, but usually work in small series, which involves a different workflow. For the Kaiserwalzer, I designed ten costumes for female dancers, ten for male dancers, and four for children. When you start a project, you always have an idea but no certainty. I usually work very quickly with prototypes. I don’t start with a drawn concept but design during the process, which suits me better and is something I find much more interesting. By the time I presented my designs in Vienna, we had already gone through an entire process of three-dimensional implementation, which allows us to immediately assess how the material would behave in motion.

IG: I’ve spent so much time thinking about the costumes for the dancers. My profession is to think for others—it’s not about self-presentation.

For more information about Ida Gut: www.idagut.ch