THE FLANDERS FASHION INSTITUTE
Twenty years ago, Antwerp witnessed the emergence of a young fashion movement. With Helena Ravijst as its driving force, the then ITCB (Institute for Textiles and the Clothing Industry in Belgium / Ministry of Economic Affairs) started an initial cooperative venture with a group of graduates from the Antwerp Academy of Fine Arts. The success of this project ultimately depended on the talent of these designers and on their international and critical vision and reciprocal understanding and collaboration. This collaboration almost immediately blossomed forth, encompassing virtually the whole scope of the fashion scene, including photographers, make-up artists, and models.

The first group of designers, ‘The Antwerp Six’, started on the road to their international career via London and later, Paris. Their strong imagery, creativity and professional competence, and their personal images gradually infiltrated and then conquered the world.

Keeping pace with their success, international interest in Antwerp and its fashion scene grew dramatically.

When the mid-nineties introduced a new generation of designers onto the scene, the name of Antwerp, with its Royal Academy as a breeding ground for new talent and a cradle for designers with a modern vision, became an international focus as an avant-garde fashion center.

Following state reforms, the ITCB ceased to exist. Except for some private initiatives, this expansion movement lacked the necessary structural support. The Flanders Fashion Institute was founded in 1997 to fill this void, with the aim of internationally promoting its pioneering role on the world fashion scene, and to support and perpetuate it. “It is not enough to foster fashion talent, it also needs to be structured”, so said Linda Loppa, initiator of the project together with Geert Bruloot and Patrick De Muynck. This attracted the attention of the government, which