Characters with a character

In her collection, Y Kiili explores the concept of pareidolia: the intersection of illusion, emotions and perceptions at the edge of reality. The collection is a playful and colorful exploration of the psyche and how characters Kiili sees everywhere transform into patterns and prints on garments.

Pareidolia is a cognitive bias. It is the tendency to perceive meaningful shapes in places where there are, in fact, none. It happens when we see illusionary fairy tale animals in cloud formations, sad faces in cliff fissures, or when the seemingly dull letterboxes become excited. Kiili says that it is a state in which we get in touch with our senses and the environment in a unique way.

– It is a meeting point between reality and emotions. This is evident in the collection, but I am also looking into how I could make use of pareidolia more generally as a fashion designer. The final shape and feel of the clothes are formed piece by piece, shape by shape, in an intuitive manner that is guided by the figures and the materials, Kiili explains the central idea of the collection.

The designer’s creative process is experimental and process-oriented, and it is led by an openness to material and mental experiences. The different figures are found through playfulness and freedom of experience.

The same applies to material development. For the graduate collection, Kiili created most materials herself, including new innovative and ecological materials from wood cellulose. In addition, she also sculpted figures on the surfaces of knitted and woven materials.

– My process has been a fascinating adventure into how my emotions project onto the environment and the surface of the materials. Working with these found characters has not only expanded my design language, but they have also given it greater emotional depth.

Contact information:

Y Kiili

riikkakiili@gmail.com
+358 443051193
@kyykiili