Tie Breaker

The future of luxury is in embracing digital. And Hermès’ 8 Ties digital installation exemplifies the partnership of technology and fashion. Taking off from last year’s installation, this year digital artist Miguel Chevalier has integrated the Hermes tie into his virtual universe in order to unveil, in an original way, the new collection of Heavy Twill ties. Miguel has integrated eight tie designs into two works. These new designs embody the 2013 theme, a sporting life, and feature a variety of sports including horse-riding, running, and skiing, and even no-sport activities such as gastronomy or poker.

Moving away from the brand’s traditional window displays and boutique experience, at this year’s show, to be held from December 6-8, Hermès is set to unveil two interactive installations of the 8 Ties collection. The first, is a virtual-reality wall projection inspired by the artist’s Binary Wave artwork. Here, the visitors’ movements are expected to activate both, a music soundtrack by the composer, Jacopo Baboni Schilingi, and animate patterns representing playing cards, pétanque balls or table football players. The second, more intimate, is an interactive virtual book adapted from Michael’s Herbarius 2059. In its pages, the visitor discovers the collection of tie designs, each one accompanied by a multilingual lexical background of the sporting and epicurean terms evoked by each design. New and unusual ways of tying a tie are also presented: the simple knot, the Windsor knot or the double simple knot and the multiple Windsor knot.

“I call this collection ‘Tie Break’. Each year we have a new theme. We also like to twist the modern digital world into a poetical one,” says Christophe Goineau, Creative Director of Men’s Silk, Hermès International. At the show this year, Hermès promises to offer an immersive experience of colours, design and music and also understand the needs of their discerning clientele.