PETER WEISZ
spring 2010

Vienna Insight by publisher Karin Sawetz, Jan 2010

The Vienna Secession and
a cocktail party in Vienna

On 29 January, my colleague from journalism and Austrian tailor Peter Weisz has invited me to his cocktail party into the 4th district of Vienna nearby the Karlsplatz where the two prominent railway station buildings are standing, once designed by the Vienna Secessionist and Jugendstil architect Otto Wagner in 1899. Why the urban history is so important for this Vienna Insight becomes obvious when you read further until the note by the editor. It's a nice coincidence that Peter Weisz works on such an art historical interesting place in Vienna.

The 29th January 2010 was an extremely cold day. I took my car instead of the motor bike to reach the inner city of Vienna. Inside the house it was easy to find the cocktail party of Peter Weisz; the voices of the guests navigated me directly to the right door. There had been so many guests that I first checked the ceiling of his atelier to 'acclimate': these must be 5 meter high spaces! The generous rooms are comfortable furnished, beginning with a big table serving chocolate pastries in the entrance.

After recognizing that I am standing on the food-beverages-servants-road, I went to the next room, where I met Peter and thanked him for the invitation. He told me that he got the new collection just ready for the salon-alike fashion presentation which he held together with Megumi Ito who was inspired for a lamp by the symbols of card games (club, heart, diamonds, spade). The lamp was installed in the next room above a bed where two men and one woman were half sitting/lying.

I went small talking with Peter into the next room: "A nice idea to install a lamp with play card symbols above a bed. Can I make a picture?"

fig.: Peter Weisz wears a green shirt. He is surrounded by two men and a woman in pieces from the new collection. The second picture on this page shows a part of Megumi Ito's lamp made of play card symbols. I have taken the pictures with the Cybershot camera of my mobile phone on 29 January 2010 at the cocktail party in the atelier of Peter Weisz.

I wanted this picture for the interview I have made some days before with Peter via email. The English text below each question is a corresponding, shortened summary of Peter Weisz' German answers.

Question: Peter Weisz, you have graduated with a master for tailoring in men’s and women’s wear. Isn’t it very rare that someone is a tailor for both, men’s and women’s? Do you have more female or male clients who prefer the work of a ‘Private Tailor’ than buying ready-to-wear pieces?

Summary of Peter Weisz' answer: Peter Weisz thinks that handcraft becomes in future more important again. His clients are men as well as women, albeit he focuses at this time more on men's tailoring. He has experienced that tailor made clothes are preferred especially by individualists and fashion victims.

Peter Weisz: ICH MUSS EHRLICH ZUGEBEN, DASS ICH MIR DARÜBER NOCH KEINE GEDANKEN GEMACHT HABE. ICH GLAUBE DERZEIT IST ES EHER EINE RARITÄT, DASS SICH JUNGE MENSCHEN EINEN ZWEIFACHEN HANDWERLICHEN MEISTERTITEL ALS QUALIFIKATION ERARBEITEN. DAS HANDWERK LIEGT WIEDER IM TREND UND ICH HOFFE, DASS DIES IN ZUKUNFT KEINE FRAGE MEHR WERT SEIN WIRD.
MEIN ATELIER IST MIT DAMEN UND HERREN KUNDEN EIGENTLICH IMMER IN DER BALANCE - WENNGLEICH ICH MICH DERZEIT MEHR AUF DIE HERRENSCHNEIDEREI KONZENTRIERE. MODERN DENKENDE MENSCHEN, INDIVIDUALISTEN UND NUN AUCH FASHIONVICTIMS LASSEN SICH KLEIDUNGSSTÜCKE NACH MASZ SCHNEIDERN.

Question: It is also very rare that an educated tailor is working in journalism. You have been fashion director for the Austrian magazine 'Diva', now you are producing fashion stories as creative director for the magazine edition of the daily newspaper ‘Die Presse’. In January the new men’s fashion was celebrated on the catwalks in Milan and Paris. How important are the trends from the international catwalks for men’s fashion in Austria from the journalistic point of view?

Summary of Peter Weisz' answer: Peter Weisz is creative in many fields. He works not only in fashion and journalism; he develops even interior concepts, accessories, furniture, etc. From his job as a journalist he knows that international trends are very important: readers want to match national designers with international standards. Peter thinks that international influences are important for a city and its population.

Peter Weisz: IN MEINEM LEBEN VERSUCHE ICH MEINEN BERUF ALS BERUFUNG ZU SEHEN UND DIESER AUCH ZU FOLGEN. ES GIBT MEHRERE DINGE IN MEINEM LEBEN ZU ERLEBEN UND ERLEDIGEN. DER MODEJOURNALISMUS IST EINE LOGISCHE STATION GEWESEN. MEINE IDEEN LASSEN SICH NICHT AUF EINE EBENE BESCHRÄNKEN. ICH ERARBEITE RAUMKONZEPTE, ACCESSOIRES UND HABE AUCH SCHON MÖBEL ENTWORFEN. ICH VERSUCHE ALLES ZU MACHEN WAS MIR IN DEN SINN KOMMT UND SPASS MACHT. DAS IST ZWAR NICHT EINFACH, ABER DAFÜR AUSSERORDENTLICH VERGNÜGLICH FÜR DIE SEELE.
ALS MODEJOURNALIST KANN ICH SAGEN, DASS DIE INTERNATIONALEN TRENDS DIE GRUNDLAGE FÜR DIE BERICHTERSTATTUNG SIND. DIE LESER INTERESSIERT WAS DRAUSSEN IN DER WELT VOR SICH GEHT UND FINDEN GERNE BESTÄTIGUNG WENN NATIONALE DESIGNER FÜR SIE NACH INTERNATIONALEN MAßSTÄBEN EINZUORDNEN SIND. ALLE INTERNATIONALEN EINFLÜSSE SIND WICHTIG FÜR DIE ENTWICKLUNG EINER STADT UND IHRER EINWOHNER!

Question: Louis Vuitton was inspired for the new fall/winter collection 2010/11 by the Vienna Secessionists art movement and artist Egon Schiele. Does the art and culture of Vienna influence your fashion too?

Note by the editor: The Vienna Secession had been founded by artists around above mentioned architect Otto Wagner like painter Gustav Klimt (who was the companion of and worked together with fashion designer Emilie Flöge, probably the model for the painting 'The Kiss' ), designer and architect Josef Hoffmann, and others in 1897. The Vienna Secessionists were exploring new possibilities of artistic expression and believed that a society must allow art its freedom. With the upcoming National Socialism, some of the artists had to flee from Austria such as Oskar Kokoschka whose art was named by the Nazis 'Degenerate Art'.

Summary of Peter Weisz' answer: As a passionate lover of his city, Peter Weisz is inspired by the art and culture of days that are gone as well as contemporary movements.

Peter Weisz: ALS LEIDENSCHAFTLICHER WIEN LIEBHABER INSPIRIERT MICH MEINE STADT IMMER - WIENER KUNST UND KULTUR VERGANGENER TAGE WIE AUCH DER GEGENWART BIETEN EINE QUELLE FÜR HERRLICHER SCHÖPFUNGEN. WIEN IST AUSSERDEM MODERN UND EGON SCHIELE EIN FANTASTISCHER KÜNSTLER DER IN SEINER ZEIT SEHR INTENSIV GELEBT UND GEWIRKT HAT - EINE SEHR INTERESSANTE PERSÖNLICHKEIT MIT EXTREM DEPRESSIVEN UND DADURCH SEHR KREATIVEN TIEFGANG. ALSO KEIN WUNDER DAS DER GUTE MARC SCHIELE SUPER FINDET!

Question: Do you think that a typical ‘Viennese fashion culture’ exists? If yes, can you describe it?

Summary of Peter Weisz' answer: Peter Weisz is convinced that a Viennese fashion culture exists. He describes it as intellectual, morbid, theatrical, spiced with underground.

Peter Weisz: SELBSTVERSTÄNDLICH GIBT ES EINE WIENER MODEKULTUR - SIE IST INTELLEKTUELL, EIN WENIG MORBID, THEATRALISCH GEWÜRZT MIT EINER BRISE UNDERGROUND.

Question: On your website, some of the pieces are entitled with the name of the artist ‘Megumi Ito’; a female textile designer who was born in Germany, grew up in Japan and was educated in Vienna at the University for Applied Arts. Does she make the textiles?

Summary of Peter Weisz' answer: Peter Weisz works together with Megumi Ito who is a close friend to him too.

Peter Weisz: MIT MEGUMI ITO ARBEITE ICH SEHR ENG ZUSAMMEN. WIR SIND AUCH PRIVAT SEHR ENG BEFREUNDET UND WIR DIENEN EINANDER ALS SEHR STRENGE GESCHMACKSPOLIZEI UND INSPIRATIONSQUELL UND MOTOR FÜR PROJEKTE DIE ERARBEITET WERDEN MÜSSEN/SOLLEN!


Karin Sawetz is journalist, media researcher and fashion scientist (Mag. Dr. phil.). > sawetz.com


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