Tutored by Walter van Beirendonck and Linda Loppa, the head of the fashion department at the time, Birchler found that the Antwerp environment and its avant-garde sensibility challenged her individual expression and creativity. The Academy‘s vision, which oscillated between fine art and fashion, profoundly shaped her approach to art and design. During those academic years, she won several awards with her collections, including two Feeling Awards, the Christine Mathijs Award, and the Swiss Design Award.
Upon graduating with a master‘s degree in 2006, she was recruited by Dries van Noten. Working within his creative team wove the Belgium spirit even more into Arienne Birchler‘s personality, imbuing in her a philosophy of fashion that is not captivated by heritage, rules, or specific styles. Rather, its roots lie in storytelling, the power of creativity, and the belief that design can make a difference.
After relocating to Zurich in 2008 and developing her first personal collection, Arienne Birchler won the Annabelle Magazine Award, which took her to New York, working with Diane von Furstenberg. The year in New York, 2010, gave Birchler a more business-oriented and commercial understanding of the fashion industry. That said, the city thoroughly captivated her with its contemporary art, catalyzing an entirely new chapter. She made a radical change upon returning to Switzerland, starting an artistic collaboration with her twin sister, the artist Pascale Birchler.
The following years were filled with an enormous exchange around artistic context and practice in creating sculptures, paintings, and installations. The duo exhibited in various galleries and museums, such as Kunst Museum Lucern, Gallery Nicola von Senger Zurich, Haus Konstruktiv Zurich, and CAN Centre d’Art Neuchâtel. Their work was rewarded with several prizes, such as the Canton Zürich Grant and an artist-in-residency program in Berlin, Germany.
THE BRAND
But after seven years of artistic collaboration, Birchler felt the strong desire to shift her professional work back to design. Influenced and inspired by embracing the immediate moment and reaching out to evoke women, their bodies, and unique personalities, she launched ARIENNE BIRCHLER, debuting with the SS21 collection in October 2020. Framing female embodiment and making her personal commentary on fashion fuels the brand‘s vision of women‘s identity and authentic beauty — formed by a universe where her experiences as an artist and fashion designer interweave.
ARIENNE BIRCHLER’s collection core lies where female independence reigns paramount. This liaison between art and fashion gives the brand a new hybrid approach to aesthetics and the awareness necessary to create a contemporary look that amplifies every women‘s essential charisma. As a brand, ARIENNE BIRCHLER, strives for empowerment and an avant-garde attitude by daring to be sensual and poetic.
The brand comprises two lines: The Ready-to-Wear collection presents the classic ARIENNE BIRCHLER wardrobe, while ARIENNE BIRCHLER LIMITED EDITION includes a semi-couture collection dedicated to artistic freedom and sophisticated craftsmanship.
https://www.ariennebirchler.com/
STUDIO BIRCHLER AG
BIRMENSDORFERSTRASSE 400
8055 ZURICH
SWITZERLAND
+41 78 771 67 33
info@ariennebirchler.com
www.instagram.com/ariennebirchler/
