Hussein Chalayan‘s first theatrical work Gravity Fatigue, received its world premiere at Sadler’s Wells in October 2015. Gravity Fatigue combined the visual creativity of his artistic concepts with contemporary dance, realised in partnership with award-winning choreographer Damien Jalet (Vessel, Babel(words)), Yeast Culture’s Nick Hillel, sound illustrators MODE-F and lighting designer Natasha Chivers, the production takes its inspiration from themes of identity and displacement, and the disconnection experienced in public spaces at moments of transition.
Gravity Fatigue has been part of my daily life for nearly two years, becoming a gap between my reality and an imagined reality. In this performance, storytelling with the body in movement, punctuated by clothes and their relationship to space has become a new unforgettable micro geography for me.
Hussein Chalayan
Hussein Chalayan MBE was born in Nicosia, Cyprus and graduated in 1993 from London’s Central St. Martins School of Art and Design. In 1994 Chalayan started his own label. He was named British Designer of the Year in 1999 and in 2000.
In his art and fashion work he uses film, installations, dance and sculptural forms to explore the perception and realities of modern life, with particular interest in cultural identity, migration, anthropology, technology, nature and genetics. His collections are known for innovative design, impeccable tailoring, drapery and an elegant minimalist aesthetic, using techniques that reference past skills and crafts combined with current technology.
Chalayan’s work has been exhibited in museums such as the Palais du Louvre, London’s Design Museum, the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, Musée des Arts Decoratifs in Paris, and the Museum of Contemporary Art in Tokyo.