Modeklasse 2025: Reflection and Reinvention

This year’s show took place on a sweltering June evening, with temperatures nearing 30°C and the courtyard atmosphere buzzing with celebration. The format was familiar: first-year students presented their White Projects, second and third years contributed individual looks, and five graduating designers debuted their final collections. But the tone felt distinct – a balance of seriousness and self-reflection, sharpened by a new wave of global uncertainty, personal questioning, and material curiosity.

Presented for the second time under the artistic direction of Craig Green, the show reflects a pedagogical approach rooted in experimentation, emotional literacy, and making. “This year’s Modeklasse show arrives at a moment when fashion’s role as a space for reflection and reinvention feels more relevant than ever,” Craig told us. “At Modeklasse, we approach design teaching as a way to question and reshape the world around us – testing new structures, values, and possibilities. While technology continues to influence how we design and communicate, the act of making and engaging directly with materials and process remains at the heart of how we develop ideas and voices.”

The results speak for themselves: collections built from deadstock and trash bags, from family archives and Bruce Lee references, from long-standing craft traditions and philosophical dreamscapes. Whether wrestling with questions of gender, scarcity, or softness, each graduate used fashion not only to communicate a personal story, but to pose a broader question about how clothes shape the way we live. Meet Benedikt, David, Dian, Julia, and Olivia – and explore their visions for fashion in a world that feels increasingly up for reinvention.

Benedikt Simon Salchegger, Vienna

“FOUND&LOST”

What are the key inspirations behind this collection?

Found&Lost began with the stark, post-apocalyptic world of Luc Besson’s Le Dernier Combat (1983), but quickly evolved into something more personal. I became interested in reimagining overlooked or discarded materials, asking what people might wear in a future where resources are scarce. It became a creative and philosophical exercise – how to survive, express oneself, or simply exist through clothing. The collection channels a speculative world, built from fragments, where each garment is a response to scarcity, resilience, and reinvention.

What materials, colours and techniques did you use in the creation of this collection?

I worked primarily with trash bags, which brought unexpected constraints – limited colours, unfamiliar textures, and even scents like citron and lavender. I also sourced deadstock fabrics, piecing together remnants that wouldn’t typically go together. Some garments were made by freezing moments in time using textile glue – capturing movement in old clothes donated by friends and family. The process became sculptural as much as sartorial: creating wearable forms that feel part garment, part relic, always hovering between function and concept.

What’s next?

I’m ready to leave Vienna and join a brand that shares my values – especially around material innovation, sustainability, and narrative-driven design. I want to contribute meaningfully, collaborate deeply, and help push forward what fashion can be in uncertain times. This chapter closes with Found&Lost, but my next one is about finding where this vision fits in the wider world.

@benediktroyal

David Hopp, Sulz

“an attempt at reconciliation: bringing the subject and the object back together again”

What are the key inspirations behind this collection?

This collection stems from a desire to use fashion as a medium for philosophical reflection and emotional resonance. Inspired by dreams, stoicism, greed, oceans, moons, meadows, beauty, and communication, I wanted the garments to initiate conversations – whether about harsh truths or gentle introspection. In a time of political turbulence, I asked how we might wear our sensitivity, how clothes could reflect the interior and reconnect us to nature, memory, and each other. Each piece sits between confrontation and comfort – offering either a challenge or quiet support, depending on what the day demands.

What materials, colours and techniques did you use in the creation of this collection?

This is a collection of antitheses – sensory and conceptual. I worked primarily with silk wool in contrasting textures and weights to create garments that feel immersive, almost like a second skin. These are paired with “nasty” polyester bodysuits, digitally printed with lush, otherworldly images. The collection draws on a wide range of techniques: fibre-reactive screen printing, digital printing, hand-rolled silk scarves, traditional tailoring, and new experimental processes developed with the amazing support of our school’s lab technicians. The goal was to make pieces that connect through bodily experience, not just intellectual design.

What’s next?

I’m aware that my sensitivity to the world might make it difficult to fit into existing structures – but I remain open to finding the right context. A recurring dream of mine is to form a collective: one grounded in shared values but diverse in aesthetics and practices. Fashion would be one part of it, alongside art, literature, poetry, performance, and interiors. It would be about challenging society, gently pushing things in a direction where we act and create with aligned virtues.

@twistininhibitions

Dian Adhami, Tehran / Vienna

“On the Edge of Equilibrium and Intimacy with Fear”

What are the key inspirations behind this collection?

This collection draws from the quiet philosophies of Hygge, Wabi-Sabi, and soft minimalism. As life became more chaotic and fast-paced, I felt a need to slow down – to return to simplicity, harmony, and stillness. I was drawn to design that resists passing trends: garments that function, endure, and nurture the body. I’m deeply invested in the dialogue between body and clothing – how what we wear affects how we think and feel, and vice versa. The muted, soft hues reflect a desire to create pieces that feel worn by time – timeless, comforting, and quietly resilient.

What materials, colours and techniques did you use in the creation of this collection?

This collection is rooted in structured tailoring, but softened through material and silhouette. I used natural fabrics – wool, silk, and leather – to express strength through sensitivity. The colours are subdued, intentionally evoking the patina of age and timelessness. Edgeless shapes and careful proportions allow for a balance between formality and fluidity. All garments were made by hand, slowly, with care. Interiors received the same attention as exteriors. The result is a collection where construction and feeling are inseparable – designed not just to be seen, but truly lived in.

What’s next?

This collection marks both an end and a beginning. It’s not just a graduation project – it’s the start of something I’ve envisioned for years. After graduation, I plan to produce and expand the collection, laying the foundation for my own brand. I want to continue developing this universe: one that reflects slowness, clarity, and emotional connection through clothes. It’s a transition from student to independent designer – one I’m ready for, and deeply committed to.

@dian.adhami

Julia Nagl, Vienna

“you should put it on a male model”

What are the key inspirations behind this collection?

This collection brings together recurring personal and artistic concerns – especially the tension between gendered expectations in fashion and the undervaluation of feminized craft. By critically engaging with menswear through a feminist lens, and reclaiming traditional techniques like crochet and embroidery, I aimed to challenge gender norms and reposition these marginalised crafts as central to design today. My grandmother’s embroidery, fabric archive, and personal photographs provided both a visual and conceptual starting point, prompting me to think beyond binary categories of mens- and womenswear.

What materials, colours and techniques did you use in the creation of this collection?

Crochet, embroidery, felting, and shrinking techniques are central to the collection, reflecting a deep engagement with handcraft. I worked from my grandmother’s archive – her fabrics, photographs, and broader aesthetic – to build a tactile vocabulary of mismatched florals, argyle patterns, fringes, and muted checks. Colours lean into the washed-out and earthy: browns, greens, and faded stripes and plaids, pieced together in unexpected ways that challenge traditional harmony and invite a reconsideration of taste.

What’s next?

While I never imagined myself designing for men, this collection helped me realise how a feminist lens can expand and subvert the language of menswear. I now see menswear not only as a space for critique, but as a rich source of inspiration that feeds into womenswear too. I’m open to opportunities in both, and excited to keep exploring the boundaries between them.

@die_nagljulia

Olivia Jochum, Vienna

“In My Own Process”

What are the key inspirations behind this collection?

“I’m still in my own process of learning, constantly discovering, and constantly growing.” – Bruce Lee.

This collection is inspired by Bruce Lee’s unique intersection of philosophy, physicality, and personal style. His presence in iconic Kung Fu films helped shape the visual language of my designs, while his emphasis on balance – especially the principles of Yin and Yang – guided how the garments move and relate to the body. I drew heavily from the aesthetics of martial arts uniforms – Judo, Karate, Kung Fu, Aikido – and the 1970s, the decade when Lee’s influence was at its peak.

What materials, colours and techniques did you use in the creation of this collection?

Natural materials were central to the process – chosen for their biodegradability, environmental impact, and comfort against the skin. Knitwear also plays a key role in the collection’s tactile language. The colour palette draws directly from Bruce Lee’s 1970s wardrobe – bringing both homage and reinterpretation into each look.

What’s next?

I’d love to continue developing my skills through an internship, gaining real-world experience and expanding my technical foundation. I’m excited to keep learning and to explore where this process takes me next.

@liv._.i