Ellen Van Dusen, the 23-year-old creative force behind rising Brooklyn label Dusen Dusen, graduated the same year I did from Tufts University. And although we had concentric social circles, we didn’t meet until last winter. I always knew of her as the cool girl who created her own major (an amalgam of art and psychology) and designed clothing that many of my friends raved about. After graduation, she moved to Brooklyn and started her eponymous brand. One year later, it has earned a promising reputation for its fierce hand-designed fabrics, flattering dresses and darling backpacks. Here, I sat down with Van Dusen to talk about being a young entrepreneur, her cultural influences and how a guy from Weezer was one of her earliest fans.
Marlo Kronberg: When did you first discover fashion? Talk a little about what your early influences were…
Ellen Van Dusen: I first discovered fashion when I was in middle school. I would go to thrift stores with my friends, cut up our finds and sew them into something much more flattering, which mostly meant making things tight. I would always look for something with an all-over print, a big graphic or lots of colors. I had a thing with colors when I was that age. I still do, I guess—but at that time I had a pair of pants in every color of the rainbow. As far as influences go, I was really into indie rock and the style that came along with it. I was totally obsessed with the band Weezer, and I wore one of the shirts I made to their concert. I met them after the show and one of them told me he liked my shirt. That was a seminal moment for me as a fashion designer, when I first realized that I could communicate through the clothes that I was making—and if someone as cool as this guy from Weezer could appreciate my taste, then I was doing something right.
Marlo: What was the first thing you designed?
Ellen: The first thing I designed was a pair of jeans that I painted a blue-and-white checkerboard onto. They were pretty terrible.
Marlo: I know that you created your own major at Tufts; talk a bit about what you studied and what your findings were.
Ellen: At school I studied the visual system and how it relates to the way that we understand and appreciate art. From an evolutionary perspective, there are certain things that they eye is drawn to. This is a major factor in why certain works become successful and others fall to the wayside. I looked specifically at color within the visual system. I was interested in the path color information takes to get to the brain and what that means in terms of our personal and evolutionary reactions to it. I wasn’t studying color theory in a sociological or typically psychological sense, but more of how our brains respond to information before it reaches consciousness.
Marlo: Did you have formal fashion training? If not, how did you learn to sew and design?
Ellen: I taught myself to sew in middle school. When I was in high school my mom got me a sewing machine, and I taught myself to make patterns and sew more complex pieces. I didn’t do a fashion program, but I worked in the school’s costume shop all through college. The head of the costume shop acted as a kind of mentor to me, and there I learned how to make things—from period pieces to zebra costumes to giant multicolored tutus.
Marlo: Talk a bit about the fabrics you use; you handprint them, right?
Ellen: I design all the fabrics in my collection. There are two printing processes I use: handprinting (I don’t do it myself—I’m a terrible screen printer) and digital printing.
Marlo: A big part of your aesthetic is the tribal prints. Would you ever do, say, florals?
Looks from Dusen Dusen
Ellen: What I love about tribal prints is the way that you can really see the artist’s hand within the design. Most of my prints start with a painting or drawing, so the imperfections are clearly visible. I hope to never lose that, [but] I’m interested in many other types of textile design. In my S/S11 collection—which I am currently working on—I am using both the hand-drawn technique and making super-perfect geometric prints in [Adobe] Illustrator as well. Expect cubes and pyramids.
Marlo: When did you start your label?
Ellen: I started my line with a small handmade collection in April of 2009. At the time I was working part-time for another designer — Mary Meyer. I decided I wanted to try to sell some of my own stuff to make a little extra cash. The line was picked up by Duo, an amazing little boutique in the East Village, and it sold out over and over again. I was sewing all the time and with all the momentum I had going, I decided that I should try to take it to the next level. I left my job with Mary and started working on my line full-time.
Marlo: How does living in Brooklyn affect your work?
Ellen: Brooklyn has a really great visual culture and you can definitely see its influence in my line. As much as I hate to talk about the DIY “scene,” it’s really inspiring to be around so many creative people that are trying to make it happen without money or connections. There’s always something new and exciting happening in the neighborhood. What I really appreciate about the Brooklyn community is that it’s so supportive. The fashion industry is notoriously competitive and unfriendly, but my experience has been that people just want to help you out and spread the word. If I were living in another place, I don’t think my line would have developed the way it has.
Marlo: What and who are your influences?
Ellen: It’s hard to say what my influences are because they come from so many places. But for my current and last season’s collection, I spent a lot of time thinking about and looking at: the sky (all the prints from my F/W10 collection have digitally manipulated photographs of the sky within them), Ben Jones paintings, above-ground subway station architecture, Chris Johanson, the Famous Class record label, old computer graphics and traditional African textiles… I will forever be a fan of Morris Louis and Frank Stella. My favorite musician is probably Cat Power, and I think my favorite writer is Haruki Murakami.
Marlo: What are your favorite things to do in New York?
Ellen: My favorite things to do in New York are getting pickles in the Lower East Side, going to PS1 in Queens, fabric shopping in Chinatown and just walking around forever. I love starting downtown and walking up to Central Park. There is just so much to look at. You pass through so many different neighborhoods and see so many different kinds of people and cultures.
Marlo: What was the last thing you read?
Ellen: Indecision by Benjamin Kunkel, but I didn’t love it.
Marlo: What are the top five most-played songs on your iPod?
Ellen: Pale Blue Eyes by Velvet Underground, Far Away by Best Coast, Walkabout by Atlas Sound, Dum-Dum by The Vaselines and You Can Make Me Feel Bad by Arthur Russell.
Marlo: How do you see Dusen Dusen evolving? Where do you want to be in two years or so?
Ellen: I really want the line to grow both in distribution and in terms of the number of pieces in each collection. I would love to have somewhere around 30-35 styles per season, whereas right now I have about 15. Also I would really like to get into the European market. In two years I see myself living in Fort Greene (I just signed a lease there with my boyfriend) with a big studio, an assistant and a bunny named Snips.
Marlo: What’s your brand philosophy?
Ellen: It’s all about having fun when you’re getting dressed and feeling confident when you leave the house.
Marlo: A little known fact about yourself?
Ellen: I’m in a shark club with my friend Molly. We get together every once in a while and talk about sharks, draw pictures of them, make shark costumes, make shark cookies, etc…
