YOU DID A GREAT BLOW JOB BRIGITTE

Christina Berger is a fashion designer who calls collections things like: Auto:Erotik (Lips, Hips, Tits, Power,) and You Did A Great Blow Job Brigitte, the latter is based on some figurative Brigitte Nielsen and Freddy Mercury oral sex scenario. Christina was taught by Raf Simons and Veronique Branquinho, her clothes major on provocative prints and simple shapes, and usually there’s a deeper concept behind everything, something to do with sexuality and consumerism and whatever. You know what I’m talking about.

Vice: Hi Christina, we last spoke almost exactly one year ago, what’s happened since?
Christina: Well, I am still dreaming of a gold-shitting donkey and a knight in a white Lamborghini. In the meanwhile I’ve been on a guerrilla tour of London, Berlin, and Paris.

What’s that?
I went to about 50 shops with a big bag with all the stuff from the collection and some catalogues. But the shops were not impressed with me just barging in, and they’re also not into taking risks. So I’m stuck selling online now.

How’s Vienna these days?
Vienna is still very intellectual and dusty. But working here is easy for me. I’ve got about 5000 jobs on the side, including cleaning and working in shops. I’ve also built up a good production line and a functioning fashion infrastructure.

Hold on, you’re a cleaning lady?
Yep. I clean apartments and photo studios. In the mornings I also work in a shop selling leather and fur, then in the afternoon I do the cleaning. So that means I have the evenings and from 5 to 8 in the morning to do my own stuff.

Wow, rough stuff. Can you tell me about your exhibition HEAVEN, BUTT’N / = THREAD (free art.transl.) and what the hell that title means?
It was a part of Vienna’s festival for fashion and photography. I wanted to show the visitor how fashion first appears in my head and then progresses to the final product, so I staged it as a giant equation–which is where the title comes from. I combine the good and the bad parts, and eventually this results in fashion.

Do you prefer to see fashion in a gallery rather than on a runway?
Well, this wasn’t really a presentation of my collection, more a general thing. But I do like fashion. Sometimes people push me in this art corner, which I don’t really get – because I make real wearable clothes. I don’t understand these super-structural architectural clothes. They’re a nightmare.

So you show regularly at fashion week then?
Actually I really want to escape from seasonal collections. I don’t like being forced in this stiff fashion business structure. During Paris or Berlin fashion week, I’m just another small label.

I like your invisible tennis socks. is this just a one-off or part of a whole invisible clothes collection?
They are a part of my little CB Sexual Sportswear project along with swimming suits, shirts, jackets.

Your work is quite horny in an industry that prides itself on being “sensual.” Why is that?
I don’t really think of my collections as sexy, I like to play with those clichés, but always in a humorous or political way, not a seriously sexy one. I also make clothes for real women, who are not afraid of their feminine shape. A lot of fashion seems to be ashamed of boobs. I think putting supposedly sexy dresses on super skinny teenage girls isn’t really the point. The way I see it is: Much ass equals much pleasure!