VIVIERS STUDIO

VIVIERS STUDIO

Introducing VIVIERS, a concept clothing brand that is numbered in limited editions and can be made to measure. Founded by Lezanne Viviers, VIVIERS offers a unique experience to building a wardrobe. The brand launched on April 11th 2019 with a showcase at Lotus House, the By- Appointment atelier that also doubles as a concept store, offering a selection of pieces. VIVIERS celebrates the senses and individuality. The collections are made by artisans in Johannesburg at VIVIERS Studio, and breathe the spirit of the city, whilst attempting to redefine luxury. Clothing is created from a place of passion and is intended to allow the wearer to be their radical self.
We pride ourselves in a sustainable practice. We aim to minimise textile waste by individually hand-cutting our garments, re-using off-cut fabrics to innovate new Edition 1/1 items including ‘Dead Stock’ fabrics. We produce Limited Editions runs that avoid the production of said ‘Dead-Stock’, and focus on creating trans-seasonal and versatile pieces that are made with integrity. The quality and the longevity of our garments take priority at VIVIERS, by not only discarding trends, but by also carefully selecting the best quality raw materials to start with.
 ENVIRONMENTAL: We source the majority of our fabrics from warehouses that have been sitting with dead-stock from the 70's. These old materials were made with integrity and did not form part of the current consumer-greed driven fashion industry as we know it today. The quality of the fabrics are exceptional and made to last. These form the base of our materials which we then print or re-work to update them.
 ETHICAL: VIVIERS is transparent. Everything is made in-house and the tailors/artisans sign their names on each garment they make, as they take pride and ownership of each clothing piece created; #who-made-our-clothes. Working conditions are wonderful and we adhere to much more than standard wages.
 ARTISANAL: VIVIERS thrives on collaborations with local artists and artisans. Hand-beading is done in-house. Hand woven pieces are created in collaboration with the Weavers Guilt in Pretoria and other artists like Feathered Fabrics. We have recently started a new collaboration with Kaross, an embroidery project which empowers Tsonga women, to create unique pieces for VIVIERS, as well as celebrate their own cultural narratives in their work. These traditional skills within our community is what brings us joy. Our garments are intended to last and intended to become heirloom, collectable pieces that is passed on from generation to generation. We often collaborate with visual artists and performance artists, as we believe in a multi-disciplinary practice.
 RECYCLED: Dead-Stock fabric could be found in so many contexts: closed down warehouses that has unsold stock from many moons ago, End-of-Range meters from design houses who produce on a large scale or even reject fabrics, that often only have a defect in color or a machine 'mistake,' At VIVIERS we find joy in repurposing these materials and bringing them back to life. We celebrate these mistakes and their uniqueness as outcasts, rejoicing in the process of reinvention and recycling. Circular design, the metamorphosis of clothing and the objective, practical beauty, is what we strive to create.
 MENTORSHIP: A core part of our belief system is education. We believe the only way to sustain the industry is with the sustaining of artisanal skills and the transference of knowledge from person to person. VIVIERS mentors numerous students every year, with a focus on sustaining a studio through employment, fair wages, the preservation of traditional hand-work and skills, as well as marketing strategies etc. The mentorship is holistic and underlines the operations of an independent design studio.