Women we admire # Almut Vogel
Almut Vogel is a German fashion stylist and emerging ceramacist. With styling clients including Cos, Strenesse and Rimowa and work with photographers such as Amira Fritz, Thomas Lohr and Kate Barry, Vogel has crafted an enviable career. Her work is characterized not only by its elegance and balance, but also with its quiet sense of joy.
- Do you have a dream girl in mind or a particular character that informs how you style?
My approach towards styling is actually quite autobiographic. There is on one hand a lot within my style which refers to the teenager I was in the early 2000s, growing up in rural Germany and trying to style what I saw on all these beautiful Vogue picturesin my own way. On the other hand, there is my fantasy of this super elegant timeless woman, who I´d love to become. Depending on my mood and the style of photography it´s one or the other that inspires me.
- What is the most challenging part of creating, for you?
I think the most challenging is not to overthink what I´m doing. I really trust my intuition. If I think too much about the style it loses it’s natural ease and I love if you look at a picture and get the impression it´s just a portrait. The clothes should define a fictive character but you should believe it´s totally real and that you know this girl already by looking at her.
- What brought you to where you are?
That´s not so easy to say, because it´s a mix of the very strong inner idea I had of working in fashion when I was 12 years old and all the beautiful encounters that crossed my path. If I think back, I had a couple of mentors that really sharpened my way and my style and who encouraged me to continue or even to move on to another direction. I love that working in fashion is all about collaborating and it´s a real moment of beauty if you meet someone who shares your aesthetics or that even challenges you to open up your horizon. Almost four years ago, I met photographer Phil Engelhardt through a common friend in Paris and since then we´re working together not just sharing the same visual language but also a very earnest friendship. So it was a real pleasure to work together with Phil on the CAES campaign.
- Why did you move into creating ceramics? What inspired you?
I´ve been exposed to ceramic since my early childhood, as my mom is working in pottery. So it has somehow always been part of my life but I actually just started to be interested in ceramics when I was living in Paris two years ago. I shared a little flat with a friend on the Rive Gauche, Rue Mazarine and every day I was passing by all the beautiful furniture and art galleries there. Looking at the showcases I fell in love with French ceramics from the 50ies and suddenly was very inspired. Since my boyfriend and I were moving to Berlin at that time we needed lamps for our apartment, so I started to create a mini series of ceramic lamps in collaboration with my mother which we want to launch later this year.
- What is your perfume?
I like very classy, natural scents, so it´s either Hermès or Acqua di Parma.
Image 1: lamp A.G. Atelier
Image 2: CAES Edition 2. Photographer Phil Engelhardt (@philengelhardt)