‘Hana Bi’: Cecilie Bahnsen celebrates 10 years with an ode to craft, memory and future light

Cecilie Bahnsen revisits a decade of design through ‘Hana Bi’, a collection crafted entirely from her own archives and presented as the first ever Guest Slot show at Copenhagen Fashion Week.

Over the decade, we have seen Cecilie Bahnsen in Copenhagen, followed by Paris, collaborations with ASICS, a LVMH Prize nomination, and so much more. Within a decade, there is a lot to celebrate. Taking place against the bare concrete expanse of Refshaleøen, a post-industrial peninsula where the city’s creative energy takes unexpected shape, Cecilie Bahnsen returned to Copenhagen Fashion Week with «Hana-bi» to mark her ten-year anniversary show, honoring the present, past, and future. Models were gliding past one another, seeming at ease and free as looks appeared and disappeared into a faint mist, creating a surreal and dreamlike mood.

Bahnsen’s signature softness created sculptured silhouettes. The collection began in white, bright and pure, like fireworks, and then transitioned into silver. «Hana-bi» is a combination of the Japanese words for «flower» and «fire» as found in fireworks; a representation of contradiction, tenderness, and upheaval. Bahnsen discovered an appropriate metaphor for her own language in this. There are references and reflections on her archive, which she reexamines in light of its timeless appeal. The past and present are collaged together. Silk-quilted backs and broderie anglaise fronts, airy skirts reveal sequin briefs underneath, reassembled or inverted silhouettes. What started as refinement devolved into exuberance, becoming more wild and liberated yet remaining firmly rooted in the universe of the house.

“There’s something special about showing in Copenhagen,” Cecilie stated in the show notes. “It’s where everything began, and many of the people in the audience have been part of the journey since the start. That makes it feel intimate and emotional. For the show, we invited some guests to wear archive pieces. They become part of the living image. The show doesn’t just happen in front of them, but around them. It’s a way of saying thank you.”