Graduate to Watch: Ewen Danzeisen from HEAD Geneve

HEAD Geneve presented graduate collections from its MA students at its annual catwalk showcase in November 2025, and one of the talented students who stood out was Swiss-based designer Ewen Danzeisen, who presented 12 all-black looks combining tailoring with functional wear.

Danzeisen’s ‘Meet the Crows’ collection drew inspiration from his own wardrobe, as well as the notion of creating “garments as lived-in experiences” as “silhouettes made to be worn, not seen”. The result was a wearable yet technical streetwear collection, exploring silhouettes and techniques, such as weaving copper fibres into his shimmering bomber jacket, as well as the use of different fabrications and textures, and introducing layering and pleating to enhance his curated palette of black shades.

“I like comfortable things in which I feel contained, safe, and confident, and this is reflected in my collection,” Danzeisen said about his collection backstage. “I’m also half Japanese, so I have a lot of Japanese inspirations, both in the silhouettes, the clean lines, and the relaxed posture. I also worked mainly with black, a spectrum that’s not inviting, yet makes you want to look closer, which I enhanced with textures, such as wool, heavy cotton, and denim, to create contrasts.”

His vision was rewarded with the coveted La Redoute × HEAD Prize, where he will work with the online retailer to develop two non-gender silhouettes for autumn/winter 2026 inspired by his graduate collection.

To find out more about Danzeisen, FashionUnited spoke to him following his graduate showcase about his all-black collection, the techniques used, why he decided to study at HEAD Geneve, and his plans after graduation.

Why did you want to be a fashion designer?

⁠I didn't really dream of becoming a fashion designer; at first, I started studying literature at university. I didn't really fit in, but this period also made me realise how necessary it was for me to work with my hands. So, I naturally started sewing random stuff with my mom's old sewing machine! I had no prior technical knowledge whatsoever, but a few years later, here I am.

The reason that motivates me to keep doing fashion now is that I want to create objects, garments for people to call their own, with and within which they can feel safe and contained.

What was the inspiration for your graduate collection?

⁠I drew inspiration from a few different places for this collection. At its core, it stems from my own experience of wearing garments: I need them to make me feel safe and contained, and I want them to also look a bit intimidating - that's when I feel comfortable. So obviously, I drew from my own wardrobe, which ranges from more technical wear to more traditional pieces.

As a matter of fact, those are the two fields I've focused on technically during the past few years: extremely functional wear on one side, and traditional tailoring on the other.

In 'Meet The Crows,' you can find a personal mix of both, a transfer of traditional techniques applied to technical garments, and vice versa.

Lastly, the overall silhouettes and lines are heavily inspired by my Japanese heritage, sharp lines with ample shapes, lots of layering, pleats, and a carefully curated palette of black shades. That last element was key, because I'm shy, and because it forces you to come closer to appreciate the details.

In Japan, standing out and taking too much space in public is frowned upon, so the use of different blacks of various contrast, texture, and shininess allowed me to create depth in my silhouettes while keeping them soft and not obnoxiously loud.

What fabrics/techniques did you use in your graduate collection?

This collection was a way for me to apply my technical skills in both traditional tailoring/handwork and extreme technical/functional wear. Naturally, you can then find a wide range of fabrics throughout the collection, such as shiny smooth nylons and membraned hardshells, but also heavy cottons, wool, and overall warmer feeling fabrics.

Since I wanted this collection to be made to be worn and experienced, the inside of the garments are super important, and some of them were constructed from the inside out. The bomber, for example, was built this way; the padding layer and lining were entirely hand-stitched using tailoring techniques to ensure a seamless and comfortable experience for the wearer, giving shape to the space for the body. Overall, a lot of care and attention went into the actual sewing. I wanted well-made, durable garments — silhouettes made to be worn, not seen.

Lastly, I had the amazing opportunity to be sponsored by GruppoCinque, an Italian textile manufacturer that I've been working with for a couple of years now. They invited me to their headquarters and factories near Como, and we worked together to develop a few key fabrics for the collection. They allowed me to tweak the texture, the feel, and the aspect of the textile. A large portion of the amazing fabrics you see in the collection is from them.

What are the signature piece/pieces in your MA collection?

⁠I would say the signature pieces are obviously the bigger ones — the huge crow coat, the metallic bomber, the leather jacket. But at the same time, it was important for me to develop a coherent line of garments. As such, even the smaller pieces like the 'crow beak' caps and the pleated hakama pants feel like signature pieces.

What did it mean to you to win the La Redoute × HEAD Prize?

I'm super glad I got this award. It feels like a very realistic one, since I get to develop a capsule collection with La Redoute. I'm very thankful for that. It also really aligns with my vision of fashion, which is making stuff that people can actually get to wear.

Why did you choose to study at HEAD - Geneve?

⁠I had really no idea what fashion was like when I applied - to be honest, I dropped out of university to apply to the fashion prep class and went in blindly. After the bachelor’s degree, I felt really confident that I wanted to pursue the master's degree there as well.

HEAD - Genève was an amazing place for me to hone all my technical skills during my BA, and I was allowed to deepen and sharpen my vision during my MA. The wide range of infrastructure and machines was also key to developing such a collection, to make actual garments meant to be worn. This place ended up feeling like home — the people there made all the difference.

What was the most valuable thing you learned on your course?

⁠On one hand, early in my studies at HEAD, definitely the technical skills. This is the first aspect of fashion I fell in love with, learning to use my hands to make stuff. This is still what I love most about doing fashion. On the other hand, I also learned to use my eyes and my head more sharply, and to understand and make sense of what I'm doing.

In the MA, you need to take a stance as a designer. You need to find your positioning in the current state of things, and just doing nice and beautiful things isn't really the main point anymore. I think grounding my work in a realistic context was essential.

What do you wish you had been told before you started your MA?

I don't know what I'd have liked to hear before the MA. I think I had a clear enough picture of where I was going as I started. When I applied for BA, though, I was pretty naive. What I wish I had heard earlier at that point would be "stitches don't sell, images will". As someone essentially passionate about craft and approaching fashion as a way to make tangible objects rather than images to generate buzz, I think that it would have been nice to be disillusioned earlier.

What are your plans now that you've graduated?

⁠I want to keep a hands-on approach to fashion. It's really important to me that I keep making and sewing garments. I'd like to open a boutique in Switzerland, a place to create, but also meet people, share ideas, visions, and knowledge, where your relationship with garments remains intimate, realistic, and tangible. There are tons of amazing people I met so far, and the collaborative aspect of my work needs to stay and grow.

I also think made-to-measure and bespoke tailoring need to come back. I want to work with my clients to deliver something unique for them.

What advice would you give someone considering studying fashion?

Go for it! Go all in. Please don't think you need to come from a certain place to make fashion — this isn't true.

But also, be aware of what it really is: the industry sucks, the opportunities suck, the pay sucks. I'm speaking broadly, of course, but this isn't the most welcoming market out there. There are always ways, though, and most importantly, people who will share your vision of what fashion should be. And at the end of the day, that's how I wish people would make fashion — the way they think it should be done, not just following the status quo.