Meet the Inuit fashion designer Louise Lynge Berthelsen
Greenland, the Pioneering Nation, is home to the Inuit People. You will encounter a world where wild and harsh Mother Nature dictates strict rules which have left a clear mark on the local mindset. Once you meet the unforgiving Greenlandic climate, you will never look at nature the same way again. The Inuit believe Greenland to be inhabited by beings as wild as the climate. Somewhere in the mountains, the wandering spirit Qivittoq lives in shame and grief due to being rejected and isolated from the community. To be able to survive in these cruel circumstances, he developed unique abilities. This is what happens to those who disconnect from their families. If you don’t want to share the miserable fate of Qivittoq, stay together with your people and show your care.
Sassuma Arnaa, Mother of the Sea, is another powerful creature that lives in the deep waters around Greenland. Were you to think of a flirty mermaid jumping from a wave, you would be disappointed. Her fingers were cut off by her father, and they were transformed into sea mammals like seals, walruses, and whales. Now, she is a protector of the sea who watches over the animals which live in her long hair. Maybe she will not win the beauty contest but she can teach you how to keep the ocean clean and live in harmony with its creatures.
There are many other supernatural beings in Greenlandic folklore, such as Tupilak, Erlaveersiniooq, Ikusik, and many others. To most Greenlanders, these supernatural creatures are as real as you or I. Each of them shares important messages and makes the Greenlandic people stronger and more adaptable to changes and unpredictable conditions.
This mystical and challenging environment was home for Louise Lynge Berthelsen, who is the pioneer of Greenlandic modern fashion. She was born in the capital of Greenland, Nuuk. From an early age, Louise knew that she wanted to become a fashion designer but she didn’t know the name for it, since there were no fashion designers in Greenland at the time. When somebody would ask her what she wanted to be, she used to say “I want to sew and I want to draw”. When she was around 18 years old she studied in the Columbine International Design School and Beklædningsfagskolen in Denmark.
When she went back to Greenland she was told that she couldn’t be a fashion designer because the population is too little and nobody had done it before. Due to her insecurity, she gave up on her dreams and started working as a bookkeeper. In 2010, her municipality gave her a big assignment to make uniforms for the biggest orchestra in Greenland. She hand-sewed 450 buttons to 85 uniform jackets and she loved it! Another opportunity came when she was invited to go to Seattle to show her designs in the Nordic museum. Unfortunately, on her way back she became very ill, and later she found out that she has gotten cervical cancer. It was a turning point of her life, which she describes in detail below:
“I had this famous wake up call. I didn’t know if I would be here in 5 years so I asked myself what I would want people to remember when they say my name. I knew I have to live my dreams so I got the divorce, I quit my job and I left my home with kids. We had no money but somehow I made it. I was sewing dresses 14 hours a day. I designed a collection of 80 pieces of clothes and I named my brand Nuuk Couture because I hoped that someone in Nuuk would wear my dresses. Just one person. I would be happy if just one person will wear my dress.”
Louise had a big opening. The circumstances were very Greenlandic, a big storm with snow. She thought that nobody would come, but within 3 hours, everything was sold out.
“I was undergoing surgery and controlling my health for the next six years but I know it was the right choice. I really feel that fashion designing is my destiny. ”
Nuuk Couture
In Nuuk, everyone knows Louise as a fashion designer. Louise's clothes are inspired by the Inuit national costume and reflect her passion, work ethic, discipline and the important values of Inuit culture. Please take the time to get to know this wonderful woman, who was kind enough to answer my questions below.
The interview below is conducted as part of my exploration and research work on indigenous designs and clothing.
What is your definition of fashion?
Fashion is the way I tell others who I am and where I am from.
What was the biggest lesson about designing you have ever received?
Even though the fashion industry moves really fast, people love it when there is a story attached to your designs.
What and who inspires you as a designer?
I’m inspired by the women that surround me. That is why all of my designs have female names. When I’m in my creative process and designing a dress, I try to picture a person in that dress, and my family members always pop up in my head - my mother, sister, great-grandmother, aunts, and cousins. I have a very big Greenlandic family, so I don’t suffer from lack of inspiration. We are 27 cousins, and we are very close to each other.
My signature pattern looks like Inuit embroidery, and when I first made it, I showed it to my grandmother to receive her blessing. I created designs which are inspired by our traditional symbolism, but can be worn by people all around the world. This is how our story can be shared with more people.
Greenlandic national costume
If you could describe Inuit clothing in 3 words, what would they be?
Couture, sustainable, uniqueness.
Why are traditional designs important for Inuit people?
Traditional designs are very much what brings us closer together. When we wear our national costumes, let’s say to a funeral or a wedding, we experience some of the strongest emotions of our life. You can celebrate a death, and honor that person by putting on the most beautiful outfit you have. And you are doing this all together.
What is the meaning of Inuit designs?
The traditional Inuit leather embroidery, avittat, comes from the Inuit women. The Greenlandic have always been hunters. We believe that you can kill an animal only if you use every part and only if you really need it. You are not allowed to let anything go to waste. Once you take its life, both you and the Mother of the Sea own it’s spirit. The different parts of Greenlandic national costumes are made of different parts of different animals. For instance, the shorts or boots are made of the sealskin. In the past, if a man was a good hunter, he could trade his seal or whale fat for beads, which his wife could use to embroider her clothing. It was said that the best dressed woman had the best husband.
Over time, Greenlandic costume went through many transformations. When Dutch sailors came to Greenland, they brought food and clothes in white linen sacks. Greenlandic people didn’t want to waste anything, so they used these sacks to make anorak jackets for men. In the past, a young hunter’s wife had a short beaded collar; over time, the wife of a successful hunter could make the collar longer, displaying their wealth. The size of the collar completely changed when glass beads became more available. The weight of a chest-length collar could reach as much as 4kg!
Over the last 10 years, we have also become less strict with colors. Young people are more playful and they want to feel free with their choices. Before, every color had its own meaning and purpose determined by age, marital status, and even one’s home region. For instance, a pink anorak was for the confirmation, red for marriage, darker colors for when you had children, and black for widows. There are also major differences between the national costume of people from West Greenland, East Greenland and North Greenland. But now, young people are beginning to choose colours for aesthetic and expressive reasons.
Do you have any stories about Inuit clothing?
In many countries families often choose to bury their loved ones in their nicest clothes. We don’t do that. In Greenland, the most beautiful outfit is our national costume, and it is passed on to the next generation. Greenlandic people are very spiritual and not attached to the materials of their clothes. When my father was born, his uncle had just died. My grandmother gave him my uncle’s name so his soul could live on through my father.
Another story is about the difference between female and male clothing. So, men’s anoraks are white. It is plain and simple and doesn’t have any patterns at all. The explanation of this choice is very practical: in the past, when men went hunting, the animals could not see them because the hunters’ snow-white clothing camouflaged them.
Women have a bit of a different approach to fashion. We love to laugh, sing, and have a social life. Our national costume is as colorful and expressive as our personalities. My great-grandmother has used the colors of beads that she thought matches my personality.
It takes 2 years to design and produce our traditional attire. Our clothes are made very sustainably to last a very long time. We wear them until it’s all worn down and can no longer be mended. This is a story that I really wanted to share.
What is your favorite textile?
Right now, it is fish leather. In 2018 I went to the Faroe Islands and attended a competition. That was the first time that I touched the fish leather. The production is sustainable and can significantly reduce marine pollution because you avoid throwing the fish skins into the ocean. Moreover, fish leather is four times stronger than a cow leather. It is really beautiful material!
What can the fashion industry do to be more sustainable?
It is a very difficult matter because you are always competing with big companies, especially on price. I believe that adaptation comes from the consumers. Do you remember the beginning of the healthy food trends? When someone was saying “I only eat ecological food”, most of the people were looking at them slightly off. Now, everyone is spreading the idea that we need to eat healthy. I think it will also happen in the fashion industry. We just need more people who will come out and say “as a consumer, you have the responsibility to choose a more sustainable label”.
This year is going to be my transformational year in terms of sustainability. I started using fabrics like eco cotton or eco bamboo which are produced with no harmful chemicals. Ethical fashion often comes with a higher cost, which is why the prices of the clothes have to go up. However, I decided to forfeit part of my commission to make them more affordable. I see it as my responsibility to make it easier for the consumers to choose these sustainable products. I feel this is my new direction, a new journey which is very important.
