MEETING: Bergur Guðna 66°North
We visited 66°North’s design atelier in Iceland during our campaign shoot, where we discussed our collaboration and design, and had the pleasure of meeting the fantastic team behind the repair shop. We also sat down with Bergur Guðna a designer at 66°North specializing in collab-projects, to talk about his creative process and how deeply Iceland and its surroundings inspire his work.
When designing for 66°North, how do you merge the technical requirements of performance wear with the aesthetic demands of contemporary fashion?
It’s always finding the perfect balance. Technical features will forever be one of the main elements used when we design for 66 collections. One of my personal goals since I started at the company 5 years ago is to maintain those elements but bring in the fashion aspect into the design phase. The garment always needs to be functional & waterproof but if it’s also visually interesting then the goal is achieved I would say.
What’s your approach to choosing materials for each piece? How do you prioritize innovation while maintaining the brand’s commitment to sustainability?
We only work with the best fabric vendors in the world when it comes to performance fabrics and fabrics in general. Polartec, Gore-Tex and mills in Italy where per meter of fabric can be pricey but that is what we are all about as a brand, trying to make the best garment possible! We are so lucky to own factories in Europe where sustainability is a major priority.
When cutting a garment, we save the fabric cuff-offs to make small accessories out of. Using deadstock fabrics is a huge part of our work. Often I have a clear picture what color & texture or fabric I want to use then request that to the factory. Sometimes it’s not available so I use what is there, which limits the end outcome of the garment and often makes the design process more challenging but it’s way more sustainable rather than always ordering in new fabrics each season.
66 NORTH KRIA / KA YO®FIELD EXPEDITION
Can you share any specific moments or experiences from Icelandic nature that have directly influenced your design choices?
When we shoot our winter campaigns, or even summer ones we sometimes end up doing it in red weather warmings. It can get extremely difficult and almost dangerous. In these shoots our garments are tested to the fullest. It’s the best way to try out new techniques, new drawstring features, cloucures systems etc and see if these things work. If they do we keep them in our design process, if not we have to find other ways and techniques to make our garments.
Iceland is very unique in terms of color. I take a lot of pictures on my phone weather in Reykjavík going for a coffee with my family or walking a moss field in the highlands. My phone has hundreds of color references, it always surprises me how many unreal colors and textures there are in the nature in Iceland.
Most 66 garments are named after places in Iceland, Glaciers, waterfalls and mountains.
How do you balance honoring 66°North’s heritage pieces, like the iconic fisherman coats, while evolving the designs for a modern, global audience?
Our archive has pieces in there that circles back to 1950’s. We always start there and pull references. Recently I’ve been exploring garments from the early 2000’s. So many interesting features that this period has. When we do a new style we would rather use the same snap button construction that was done on a garment in our archive rather than finding a reference from pinterest. Personally I want the individual who the will design a new 66 garments in 100 years time to be inspired by the jacket I did that’s sitting in the archive.
