Carla Chahrour

Hermès Carré Club, a multi-facted and interactive exhibition celebrating the French maison’s famed silk scarf, opened from January 15-20 at the United Arab Emirates cultural district, Alserkal Avenue in Dubai. 

Dubai serves as the latest stop of a world tour that has included New York, Milan, Toronto, Singapore, Los Angeles and Paris, the by-appointment event celebrated the art and legacy of the scarf, with installations and artist stories that showcase a more entertaining side to one of the luxury house’s most revered products, allowing visitors to learn everything about the famous Carré scarf.

Speaking to Arab News Japan at the Carré Club, Daiske Nomura, a Japanese designer and illustrator that designs men’s scarves for Hermès said: “I’m from Japan so my inspiration comes from Manga, Animation and those Japanese cultural designs. I pick up items from the Émile Hermès collection, which are vintage items that Hermès is collecting. For example, I picked up the tricycle from the collection and changed it to include robots and horses. So I’m mixing all of them together and making my own designs.”

The maison’s signature silk scarf known as “Le Carré” (or “silk square”) for its recognisable square shape was created in 1937, the Hermès classic scarf has become an emblem of the fashion house and has established itself as a wardrobe essential for its multi-purpose uses as it can be worn around the neck, as a headband, as a turban, as a belt, or even as bag accessories.

With its four borders mimicking the blank canvas of a painting, Nomura explained how designing  Carré scarves is much like making a painting. In a stand dedicated to scarves designed by Nomura, two versions of his creating process are displayed, one being the analogue side, which consists of pencils, erasers and markers, while the other is the digital drawing side.

The analogue side at the event was shown through an enumeration of hand-drawn designs featuring dragons, horsebacks, skeletons, robots and spiders. Whereas, the digital side was displayed on computer and iPad screens.

Combining  recurring manga and anime motifs such as robots and dragons with common Hermès symbols transforms Hermès emblems into a world that is almost futuristic. 

(Daiske.Nomura/Instagram)

While the inspiration comes from Japanese culture, the designs and characters present on the scarves are created by Nomura, who wants people to “imagine their own stories or meaning” to his designs.

(Daiske.Nomura/Instagram)

The scarves teem with imaginary mythic beings: fire-breathing dragons, horseback-riding skeletons and robots that provide viewers and wearers with an otherworldly, fantasy-like experience attained through the attempt to interpret the story behind each scarf.

The Carré Club had various elements including the Carré Stories, where visitors can learn about the creation of the scarf, the Carré Studio where visitors can meet some of the artists behind the iconic designs, the Carré Cut, which offers an introduction to the art of scarf tying, the Carré Park, a mini skateboard ramp with skaters, the Carré Cafe, which offers food and coffee, the Carré Ok, which features a number of popular tunes for visitors to sing along to and the Carre Mania pop-up stores for those wanting to purchase a scarf.

Initially, the scarves were exclusively for women and the event was dedicated to women’s scarves, however a men’s version has been created and the Hermès’ menswear Artistic Director Véronique Nichanian and Goineau have since incorporated a male element to the event.

Nomura’s designs showcase how the Carré serves as a space of experimentation that allows the symbiotic collision of two worlds: fashion and art.