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In Focus: Charlotte Kidger At Browns Brook Street

In 2020, next-generation artist Charlotte Kidger transformed the windows of our original flagship on South Molton Street. In 2022, we're welcoming her back to feature in The Focus area at our new Browns Brook Street Boutique.

In our commitment to becoming more conscious, we're repurposing the London-based innovator’s colourful sculptures which have been crafted from waste materials and hand-dyed resin. This time the abstract sculptures are complementing and showcasing noteworthy resort wear, ready-to-wear and accessories from the season's most coveted runways.

Already in high demand, Kidger’s impressive résumé includes working with friend (and Browns favourite) Bethany Williams and exhibiting at Make Hauser & Wirth in Somerset. Below we get better acquainted with this exciting young artist.

On becoming an artist…
Once I left my undergraduate course, I soon realised that the physical hands-on part of the creative process was something I really needed. It’s hard to describe, but I have always been obsessed with colour and materials and the narratives you can create with them. I decided to study an MA in Material Futures at CSM. We were taught to do research through making and this methodology has very much stayed with me and made my practice what it is today.

On materials and colours…
At the moment, I work specifically with a combination of plastic dust (collected as waste from CNC factories in the UK that make 3D plastic models) and hand-dyed resin. What’s great is that factories are now seeing their waste as a valuable resource to artists and designers, and they’re beginning to take responsibility for how they can reduce, reuse and recycle their waste streams.

I’ve always had quite a strong eye for colour and really enjoy playing with how it can be applied. I tend to be inspired when I’m mixing my colours. I’ll start adding the pigments and see them clash at first, then slowly mix together. I then take a photo and save for future reference.

On the importance of sustainability…
When I started my MA in 2016, I was becoming more aware of the shifts in material choices, requirements, and the heavy research and development that was being done into what things are made from and the processes behind them. Given that waste streams and the need for more sustainable materials was a central talking point, I decided it was only right to work with materials that already existed. A design challenge became very clear and my journey started there.

On her inspirations…
I’m often inspired when in nature, especially in terms of colour and texture. By contrast, I’m also influenced by quite industrial forms. I think the simple, bold forms of my pieces allows room for the attention to be focused on the materials themselves.

On the installation for Browns…
When the team contacted me to collaborate, I felt it was a great chance to develop some existing pieces. The corrugated circular forms and broken textured edges have been referred to as Greek ruins before, and it’s always something I wanted to push further as a narrative and concept. The project with Browns has been one of the most fun yet as the colour palette really varies.

Charlotte’s sculptural installation will hold iconic ready-to-wear, resort wear and accessories from the likes of Jacquemus, Saint Laurent, Bottega Veneta, Louisa Ballou and many more at Browns Brook Street from Wednesday 18th May to Thursday 16th June 2022.

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Interview by Sophy Davis Russell