FROM FEBRUARY 1, 2025
TIME in FASHION
The exhibition ‘TIME in FASHION’ shows how time touches fashion – and how fashion touches time. From 1 February to 1 June 2025, three designers will expose different layers of time in their artistic designs in the Westfries Museum in Hoorn. From disposable fashion to 17th-century elite language in clothing.
- Fashion designer Sepehr Maghsoudi exhibits his new men’s line TIME, with a focus on abuses in the current clothing industry.
- Asya Kozina, Ukrainian paper artist, creates extravagant wigs made of paper, inspired by the 18th-century wig era. To be seen for the first time in the Netherlands.
- Former costume designer of the Dutch National Opera, Rien Bekkers shows costumes reflecting on the 17th and 18th century clothing style.
Their fascination for fashion and fashion techniques and materials from the past forms the connection between the three designers/fashion artists. But also the amount of time, expertise and details they put into their designs. As a counterpart to and statement against the current trend ‘fast fashion’.
The works can be seen throughout the cleared Westfries Museum, with the exhibition feeling like a journey of discovery through the museum. Every space surprises.
Mirrors past and present
The exhibition TIME in FASHION shows that fashion is so much more than what you wear. It is also craft, industry, exploitation and art. As always, the Westfries Museum mirrors the present and the past, holding up a mirror to the public: now more literally than ever.
TIME in FASHION is the museum’s last exhibition before it closes its doors on 2 June 2025 for a major renovation.
Fashion is part of everyday life and is constantly changing, with every event. You can even see a revolution coming through clothing. Everything is visible and tangible in clothing. – Iconic fashion journalist Diana Vreeland (1903-1989)
Information
- Dates: 1 February to 1 June 2025
- Opening hours: Tuesday to Sunday 11.00 – 17.00
- Visiting address: Roode Steen 1, Hoorn
Fashion designer Sepehr Maghsoudi
Sepehr Maghsoudi (1982) is a Dutch fashion designer with Persian roots, living in Hoorn. The power of his message lies not only in his artistic creations, but especially in the profound underlying message. Sepehr Maghsoudi spreads the mantra to believe in yourself and encourages adults and children to use fashion sustainably. Sepehr Maghsoudi, who himself had to flee from Iran to the Netherlands, knows better than anyone how important it is to keep believing in yourself.
The Dutch public got to know Maghsoudi through his participation in ‘Project Catwalk (Runway)’ in 2010. He now has 25 collections to his name, his work has been published worldwide, including in Vogue Italy, and he was knighted in 2021 for his artistic work with social impact.
New collection TIME
In the Westfries Museum, Sepehr Maghsoudi exhibits his 25th couture collection called TIME. He draws inspiration for this collection from his observations of important taboos in society and his desire to discuss them. In addition, the completely emptied museum offers the space to offer an overview of his work over the years. And during the exhibition, the designer will move into the former café space as an ‘artist in residence’: he will transform it into his temporary studio for spontaneous Meet & Greets and special workshops.
National and international fame
After studying MBO Architecture, Sepehr Maghsoudi chose to study fashion at the Amsterdam Fashion Institute, where he graduated in 2009. In 2008, during his studies, Maghsoudi started as a fashion designer under his own name and gained national and international fame. He has done the styling for artists such as Sting, Armin van Buuren, Edsilia Rombley and Tyra Banks and he participated in the second season of the RTL5 television program ‘Project Catwalk’. He has also designed a collection for the MTV program ‘My Super Sweet Sixteen’. His collections have been presented at the Amsterdam Fashion Week and Paris Fashion Week, among others.
Visit the website of Sepehr Maghsoudi
Sepehr Maghsoudi
Paper artist Asya Kozina
Asya Kozina (1984) was born in Ukraine into a family of artists. She transforms simple white paper into museum masterpieces, including baroque punk wigs and eccentric wedding dresses. All her artworks are unique and handmade. With great attention to decorative details, she develops the paper with her hands into art full of meaning. It therefore takes weeks to several months to complete one wig. The fragile sculptures acquire eternal life through photography.
Asya Kozina works at the intersection of fashion, sculpture, photography and decorative arts. For her, paper is a lifelong voyage of discovery into the possibilities of the material, her art also reflects her vision of the world. In this way, she translates her interest in authentic clothing from the past into contemporary art objects, creating a dialogue between the past and the present. Her work arouses worldwide interest: from the Venice Biennale to advertisements for fashion brand Dolce & Gabbana.
Baroque punk wigs made of paper
For the first time, her art can now be seen in the Netherlands. In the Westfries Museum she exhibits eight baroque wigs, based on hairstyles from the past. While hairstyles then served as symbols of wealth that reflected social status, Asya Kozina’s wigs are also manifestos. Statements in which she incorporates luxury symbols such as a private jet, ship or skyscraper. According to her, people now – just like then – want to prove their wealth and influence through symbols. The iconic work ‘Religion of Death’ reflects her experiences and feelings about the war in her homeland.
Exceptionally detailed paper art
Asya Kozina received her master’s degree from the Faculty of Visual and Decorative-Applied Arts at Cherkasky National University. With her exceptionally detailed paper art, she has participated in more than 20 personal and group exhibitions worldwide. Asya Kozina also organizes an annual competition for young talented children and young people, and founded an art studio for children in Ukraine. From 2011 to 2020, she lived and worked in two countries – Ukraine and Russia – her husband’s country. Since 2020, she has been living and working in Ukraine, where she has been using art to support children since the start of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Visit the website of Asya Kozina
Asya Kozina
Costume designer Rien Bekkers
Rien Bekkers (1950) has been an independent costume designer for theatre, opera, ballet and film since 1980. He has worked for large and small subsidized groups in the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany, and with leading Dutch directors. Rien Bekkers has designed costumes for more than 150 theatre, ballet and opera performances: from modern dance performances by Henry Purcel to classic plays by William Shakespeare.
His carefully composed costumes are made of rich colorful fabrics in many layers, with long plumes, large hats and tall wigs. A humorous nod to the eccentric fashion scene in the 18th century: baroque at its best. Rien Bekkers knows how to translate the silhouette of historical costumes into a contemporary theatre costume so that he makes past and present coincide on stage. In the Westfries Museum, 35 of his costume objects can be admired. Art, mastery and craft flow together in it.
Costume designer for theatre and opera
Rien Bekkers: “From my background as a costume designer for theatre and opera, I make costume objects. Without a moving actor or singer, a costume takes on the characteristics of a monumental sculpture, it becomes an object. From a fantasy, interest in the material and love for craftsmanship, modelling and experimentation gradually give rise to a shape, an atmosphere and a silhouette – which I hope will arouse wonder and intrigue.
Different artistic traditions from my own country and other cultures are a source of inspiration. There is no substantive connection between the source of inspiration and the final object in which it appears. It’s purely about the shape and the atmosphere it creates. From a relative simplicity in lines and color shades to very exuberant. There’s always something sculpted about it, and a little absurdism always tickles my fancy. In search of timelessness.”
Visit the website of Rien Bekkers
Rien Bekkers
