Een paar weken geleden sprak Threegirls met la gazelle Hannelore Knuts en haar vrienden Tim Vanhamel, Philip Metten en Eva De Leener. Op vraag van Hannelore, die de ELLE/april vorm gaf naar aanleiding van haar tentoonstelling UltraMegaLore in het Hasseltse Modemuseum. Het werd een fijne avond daar in Borgerhout, vol schone woorden gedrenkt in Limburgs geknetter, pintjes en gin-t.

De extra ogen en oren van Hannelore / ELLE april 2010

Ze stond voor de lens van topfotografen en liep modeshows voor de allergrootsten. Hannelore Knuts was jarenlang topmodel, maar dat deed ze niet alleen. Er was muziek voor haar dagelijkse dosis vibes. Er was kunst voor extra zuurstof. En er waren vrienden voor die broodnodige komma in haar jachtige leven. Hannelore is de eerste om te benadrukken hoe belangrijk haar vrienden zijn. ‘Zij hebben me gemaakt tot wie ik ben.’ Haar compagnons de route zijn het kunstenaarskoppel Philip Metten en Eva De Leener, en muzikale brazielnoot Tim Vanhamel. Vier verwante zielen vol bevlogenheid en bravoure. Ze zijn elkaars afgoden en grootste critici.

De koning van het Hanneloredom is met voorsprong Tim Vanhamel. Hij dook op rond haar zestiende, en is sindsdien nooit meer weggegaan. Hannelore: ‘Tim en ik zijn exen, maar best buddies in life. Hij is de beste roller coaster ride die je je kan inbeelden. Het gaat alle kanten uit met hem: overkop, traag naar boven en dan weer supersnel naar beneden. En op het einde wil je nog eens.’ Tim: ‘Allright! Ik wil hier niet te melig worden, maar Hannelore is iemand die altijd zal blijven. Ik ben de eerste die ze belt als haar vliegtuig landt, en omgekeerd. We hebben een half woord nodig om elkaar te begrijpen, of het nu over kunst, mode of muziek gaat. Ik supporter haar door dik en dun, ik sta voor Hannelore.’

(…)

Meer zie ELLE april!

En ja ook Threegirls krijgt blefarospasmische aanvallen van het woord duizendpoot (intro). Dat moest brazielnoot zijn! Of pepernoot of pekkanoot. Eindredactie… Shoot.

Na het interview trokken we op fotoreportage.

Ook warrior Kendell Geers is bevriend met Hannelore. Tijdens een lunch in januari hadden we het over ‘The art of being a muse’, speciaal voor de UltraMegaLore catalogus, uitgegeven door Ludion, vormgegeven door BaseDesign.

© Ludion

The art of being a muse / A conversation between Hannelore Knuts and Kendell Geers

Before you get lost in her head, you have got to know this. Hannelore likes flamenco, indulges herself in yellow every morning at six, and loves riding her sea horses straight into the love Bermuda. Or not. It doesnʼt matter. A muse is beyond facts, what counts are the flames. So donʼt get nervous if you lose ground while walking around in Hannelore, just enjoy the vigour of her muse-being. That is what some famous others have done before too. Fashion icons like Jean Paul Gaultier, Haider Ackermann and Azzedine Alaïa, they all called Hannelore their muse. When artist Kendell Geers – who is sitting in front of her during this conversation – draws her attention to that fact, she gets a bit shy. “I didnʼt plan to become a muse, I donʼt know why I am a muse, I just am who I am and do what I do.”

And then Kendell makes her even more shy. “Hannelore has a very interesting individuality in terms of how she presents herself. She works in the ultimate of male fantasy – although it gets more complicated with all those gay men running around – but manages to stay feminine without losing herself in clichés. She is super-sexy and super-beautiful, but with no need to play the fantasy, nor to pretend to be anything except for what she is. And that makes her so strong. In a way, people like Hannelore – and there are few in the industry – make fashion respectable for me. Still I think the big picture of fashion is empty bullshit, representing everything which is disgusting about capitalism. I have an extreme love-hate relationship with fashion.”

The first time Hannelore and Kendell met, a cornucopia of talking marked the first hours. Followed by an exchange of phone numbers, and some hazy plans to – one day – ʻdoʼ something together. Hannelore describes his energy as pure, honest and “even though his art is a constant this (air boxing in his face), it is not about the shock. He just wants to make you conscious. He has got the poetry (waves in the air) and the common sense (points at the floor). And while you are still busy looking up and down, he already got you there, right in the middle. Wham! And then there is a really good heart too, I immediately felt that. See, Iʼm not afraid of you!” Kendell – smiling back – for his part is utterly fascinated by the idea of the muse, “which in a way is what your exhibition is about. I even think that being a muse is the key to what you represent, and the key to what I as an artist am looking for.”

(…)

Meer zie catalogus!

© Ludion

© Ludion

Hannelore all over dus. En voor de bleekgrijze sceptici: Hannelore is een superfijne gazelle. Très à l’aise Blaise en nog meer cool Raoul. Tsjin!

that will do. Cut the commercial comedy! Your face starts looking like a perfume bottle! I even can’t tell the brands apart anymore. Your face starts looking like a mash-up of at least three kinds of perfume bottles! O my god, and a bit like a cow after delivery too!! Please Scarlett, a bottled cowface isn’t worth even the biggest money. And stop imitating Tom Waits too.

Scarlett Johansonn, new face (or perfume bottled..) of Dolce & Gabbana’s Rose The One

Ps: I do like Scarlett putting on silly faces, in movies.

No content! Just cool (willowy, flat-chested) birds! In a nice Parisian flat!

(Charlotte Gainsbourg and Lou Doillon by Annie Leibovitz)

See more at Vogue’s Shape Issue..

Last Thursday, I went to Paris to see the autumn/winter show of AF Vandevorst. It was magical. On Fever Ray’s enigmatic sound, the husky deers strided before our eyes. Totally AF style. These were my favorites.

The next day, I cut my hair like Tao! Tao was the coolest.

O o and what do I read here (29/03/2009)? Tao is one of the hottest models in town. Because of. Her haircuuuutttt.