Words:      Morgane Nyfeler

Broadening its unique creative universe, Ninety Percent unveils a first, limited-edition capsule, in collaboration with artist Vivien McDermid, exploring natural and artistic motifs.

Inspired by ancient forests and lochside on the rural West Coast of Scotland, McDermid’s oil-painted prints bring some gentle autumnal warmth to functional pieces, adding light and texture where the trees meet the sky. The Two Trees landscape adorns a shirt dress, blouse and T-shirt, while the Warm Sky print embellishes a woven top. The paintings live harmoniously on the sculptural silhouettes, with the intention to come to life through movement.

Viven McDermid is an artist based in Edinburgh, Scotland. She is a former fashion designer currently painting vivid artworks that beautifully depict nature. The taste and bite of colour and landscape are often her starting points: a glare of autumn sun, flowers in the window of a dark room, a warm-earth landscape, the glowing wick of a recently snuffed candle. We spoke to Vivien about the collaboration’s genesis and her considered approach to style, art and design.

Elliot and I met at Edinburgh College of Art in the early 2000s. We forged a friendship that grew from a mutual love of observational drawing, collage and colour. We've remained good friends since then and when Elliot suggested a collaboration with Ninety Percent, it felt to me like a very natural evolution of our creative friendship.

I found myself naturally returning again and again to an obsessive interest in depth of colour and texture. Using paint is the only way I can satisfy this thirst for the alchemy of colour. But it's exciting to work with designers who are masters at understanding 3D form and structure. Where we meet is often a rich and rewarding place to be.

Painting for me is an act of searching: digging for something tangible within my compulsive daydreams. It’s also a place where the universes of experience, hope and anxiety meet. At the heart of this is a lively engagement with the senses and a curiosity about how they might help me to interpret the world outside of my body.

I spend most of my life in the studio or at home with my family, so comfort and practicality is usually my biggest consideration. I rely on just a few pairs of dungarees, jeans, old t-shirts, aprons and plimsolls. But I love the sensory experience of clothing and I like to make an effort when there's an opportunity.

The high regard for craftsmanship, longevity, people and planet are very much in line with my understanding of how art and design should be approached. I love the clarity and timelessness of the Ninety Percent aesthetic. The shapes are all at once modern and soft, sculptural and tactile. It feels fitting that the natural world from which I find imagery for my paintings is respected and considered throughout the process of making and printing these garments.