The Youth
About Bonne Suits, At the Schans and Bonne's favorite tattoo
Despite everything, De Jeugd - the group of young people who annually think along about Into The Great Wide Open - was on Vlieland this summer. The five took photos for a series of their own postcards but also talked extensively with fashion designer and gallery owner Bonne Reijn, known for his Bonne Suits. On the island, Bonne organized an edition of Op de Schans together with Alma Mathijsen and SLAA, where writers and speakers fantasized about a new world. De Jeugd quizzed Bonne at Vuurboetsduin about his fashion career and his time in high school, and planted a seed for new merchandise.
Would you like to join De Jeugd? Then email sam@intothegreatwideopen.nl.
De Jeugd: Could you briefly introduce yourself first? For the people who don't know you very well yet.
Bonne Reijn: "Yes, of course. I am Bonne Reijn, 29. I think I will turn 30 next month. And then I will be in the days of reckoning. That's it. I live in Amsterdam, I have the brand Bonne Suits and a clothing store called Zeedijk 60."
What brings you to the island?
"I am working with Alma Mathijsen for and together with SLAA, the Stichting Literaire Activiteiten Amsterdam. We make a sort of literature program, which we always do at my home. At Oude Schans 15. Last year we also did that on Vlieland. And now we are back, which is really super fun."
How did that come about? Did you come up with that?
"Well, I absolutely did not come up with it, but where it came from is that I have been programming cultural activities at home on the Oude Schans since I was eighteen. I have a pretty big house; I inherited that from my mother, who passed away when I was eight. And when I was 24, I was able to buy the other half. And actually, since I was eighteen, when I moved back there, by myself, I started organizing galleries there. Art exhibitions, but they actually take place in a living room. With my housemates in a very informal setting, because I find it a big problem in the cultural sector, and especially in the art world, that galleries and such things are such a formal mess."
You almost have to come in a suit.
"You really do have to come in a suit! And that makes no sense at all, because culture has nothing to do with that. That's why I wanted to organize something in my living room, so that ultimately a gallerist comes into a living room and sees work that he actually finds very beautiful, and then he has to take a better look at it. In addition, I find it very important that culture is accessible. By that elitist attitude - by thinking that everyone should wear a suit - you already put 90 percent of people out of the game."
"So that's how I started organizing things at the Oude Schans. Alma and I have been good friends for a long time. She is a writer and has done a lot with SLAA. So that's how the link came about: Alma had the idea, and she always came to my gallery nights. Then she said: we really need to do something with writers, and spoken word, and poets. I thought that was fantastic, so we started with that."
Sick! And why are you making suits? Out of everything you can do, why do you choose suits?
"I don't see it so much as suits, but more as uniforms. I've been working in fashion since I was seventeen. And hopefully, you'll also start asking questions about everything you do. Like: is this an interesting world? What would I like to change? Because with everything that can be done, there are also negative sides. There are a lot of negative aspects to fashion, and I've gradually discovered that."
"I wanted to make suits because I think it's really cool if we all start wearing a uniform again. So that we all wear the same thing and you no longer look at what brand someone is wearing, or what their swag is. I just really enjoy it when someone gets their style from their personality and the way they treat people. Or, well, how they carry themselves, actually. That’s a really interesting dialogue with yourself, and fashion is part of that."
Does it define you as a person?
"It doesn't define you as a person. And due to this capitalist society, we are imposed with the notion that fashion is the most important thing. 'If you dress like this, then you are that kind of person.' That's bullshit. So it just seemed cool to create a uniform. Of course, it doesn’t entirely work like that, because Bonne Suits is really hip and has also become a kind of identity thing, but fundamentally, it would be cool if we all wore the same thing again."
But don't you sometimes think: clothing is a way to express yourself? Because that does go away a bit if everyone wears the same.
"Yes, but I think it's time for that to go away for a while. It can always come back. I feel that people used to express themselves a lot in their clothing style, but that isn’t done as much anymore. Everyone just wants the quick fix with brands, you know?"
600 euros for a Gucci cap.
"Exactly, or trainers. It's very important to me that we return to a starting point, and from there, style can emerge again. Because style is very important and also a lot of fun. It is one of the ways we define ourselves as people. But it has just gotten a bit out of hand now."
Why is that especially the case now?
"Due to money and the fact that the fashion industry has become such a large industry in a very short time. In the past 100 years, the fashion industry has become the largest industry in the world. And the most polluting industry."
Are you very engaged with the sustainability of your clothing?
"I am really doing my best with that. The idea is sustainable, the marketing is sustainable. I photograph a very diverse group of people, and it’s in my home, so it doesn’t have to do with any beauty standards. At Bonne Suits, it doesn't matter whether you're male or female, because it’s unisex. And your sexual orientation or skin color doesn’t matter either. I don't care. Additionally, the idea is that you can wear a suit that lasts long, that is also sustainable. You just buy one thing and then you're safe with that."
"I produce in Europe, so that’s all fairly neat. It’s all checked and I also visit the factory, that’s all fine. We are looking for sustainable cotton, but that gets complicated and it's a grey area. Cotton is a very difficult fabric; it's made in a really awful way. But if I can't get cotton, I can't make Bonne Suits. So we're currently focused on green and sustainable cotton, we are all looking into that. But it takes a lot of time. It’s an ongoing process."
Good that you are so engaged with that. So you've been working in fashion since you were seventeen?
"Yes, I started working at a clothing store when I was seventeen."
How did that go? You didn't study, did you? Did you ever decide: okay, I’m consciously not going to do that?
"No, not at all. It was purely coincidental. I had a bit of trouble at school, struggling to adapt. I found it difficult in groups, just tough with people around me. The hardest part from 1 to 18 years old is that you have to meet all kinds of obligations. And that you are obliged to interact with all sorts of people, people you don’t choose for yourself. I didn’t have such a big social network and was quite insecure. And I was certainly messing up my school, so I couldn’t derive any satisfaction from that, or confirmation that I could actually do something."
You were not really rewarded.
"No, you don’t get happy, you know what I mean, and I needed that. I eventually obtained my HAVO diploma through a complicated route. And then I had no idea; I had no ambition in fashion. I did know that I had a cultural sensitivity, I listened to a lot of music. That is the most important thing in my life. That naturally connects you with subcultures and styles. So I was engaged with that, but I didn’t have style myself. I really didn’t understand anything about it. And back then, it was also different, you know? I had no idea who Jean Paul Gaultier was, or any of those designers. I wasn't involved with it at all. And then I had to find a job."
"I was done with school, and you have to do something, and you also just need money. So I applied everywhere on Rozengracht. But also just at the kebab shop, the cigarette store, the supermarket, everywhere. No one wanted me. But at one point, when I went to drop off my CV at various places, I ended up in a kind of corridor, a concrete corridor. I thought: what is this? I should check it out."
"It was a 20-meter concrete corridor with wooden penises on the wall, wooden phalluses. That’s a kind of ritual in Thailand. Later, I found out that the owner bought those things. Pretty cool items, but they were lined up against the wall, and I thought: what the fuck is this? Then I walked into a very large open concrete space, with all the most beautiful things I had ever seen. All very beautiful furniture, a sort of huge cabinet with very nice pants and other clothing items. And I thought: what a world is this? So I just dropped off my CV, and it turned out to be the only place that wanted to hire me."
A half-year later, they called me up and told me that only women worked there and that they were still looking for a young man. When I was young, I had a lot of energy, so I could also chat, you know? I think they just liked that a young, reckless guy was selling very expensive clothing items there. They taught me a lot about those brands and what they entail. At first, you are of course completely in love with that world because I already had my own ideas at a very young age. And that’s nice about the fashion world because everything is very free. So I fell in love with that crazy world, and then I could stay there. From there, I could start working as a stylist. And then I realized that I wanted to start my own brand."
What a funny story! What kind of projects do you want to do in the future? In terms of collaborations, but also in terms of clothing items?
"Good question. We are currently working on a coat, a long coat. A sort of Burberry coat. I think that's coming out soon; I'm very happy with it. Of course, I have made shoes, low and high. But I would still like to design more shoes because I really enjoy that. In addition, we of course have the Bonne Suits and the De Rrusie Suits. The De Rrusie Suit is more of a suit, flashier for an event or something, and the Bonne Suit is just for always. And I would like to introduce another suit as well. Lately, I’ve been wearing a lot of denim, and I think a denim suit, not formal but still a pants and jacket, is really beautiful. So I’m currently sampling that. But I also find fashion not so appealing in many ways, so I am also working on other things."
A kind of love-hate relationship?
"Yes, very much so. And I am of course very active on Zeedijk. I think that’s fucking cool, in my neighborhood. Zeedijk 60 is a sort of meeting place for young people, and also a cultural place where kids can gather. If you own Zeedijk 60, you stand for diversity, and you stand for a safe space. That’s what you stand for, and I think it would be very nice to also do that with a kind of pub or hospitality venue. So I'm also working on that now."
That's sick! Where do you get the inspiration for those projects?
"Nothing really inspires me that much, although I do read a lot of books. I really enjoy that, but that's more for my own intellect. But what I find the most important in life is accessibility. That's my theme. I hate it when people say: this is not for you, I find that really annoying."
You say: I read a lot of books. What do you read then?
"Everything, science fiction, English, Dutch. Right now Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead, by a Polish writer (Olga Tokarczuk, ed.). And I am completely hooked on Hesse, and I am also reading a lot of Julian Barnes. A British writer, who writes a lot about time and memory, and about how you communicate with yourself, while your memory is really 80 percent bullshit. That's what I'm reading a bit now."
Besides reading, you mentioned that music is the most important thing in your life. Is that from a young age or how did you discover that?
"I know that I have always had a lot of energy anyway, so I was always making noise. Even as a child, just doing annoying stuff all the time. That also calms me down, so music, if something plays that evokes emotion in me, then I don't have to think about other things. So for me it's a kind of support and escape. Music has taught me everything. Musicians tell a very clear story, and it comes to you in a really nice way. They don't impose anything on you, they just write a nice song. And as you study this artist, you think: wow, this artist, who is that actually? What did they look like, and why? Why do they write these words? Yes, that's how music has taught me many things."
And a lot of live music too? How have you experienced that in recent times, without all those live shows?
"Look, I'm not going to cry about it, it's not that intense, but it is difficult. During the quarantine, I left Amsterdam a lot. Amsterdam is actually the most fun at Paradiso, with all different people. And in the pub, with your friends, and in places where culture is lived together. Then I find Amsterdam the most fun; other than that, it's actually not that great. You have a ton of tourists, it's really expensive, you know, but culturally it's a really cool city. Very diverse. And I just really miss that."
And had you been to Vlieland before?
"I had been to Vlieland before, but not much earlier for Into The Great Wide Open. Last year was my first time and it was really fantastic. So now definitely every year."
So, next time also Bonne x ITGWO merch?
"Well, festival director Ferry and I have talked about it. But you know how that goes, then it gets parked for a while."
Well, you can always do something with us?
"Yes, I think that's really nice. It seems like a super fun idea.
The Youth also has its own merch every year. We have already had fanny packs and hoodies.
"With Zeedijk 60 we can definitely do something. We can make a cool hoodie, or a nice drawing and link that to Into The Great Wide Open."
Indeed, because not many people will buy bags at a festival.
"No that's right, so that will be difficult, but maybe we can make a longsleeve. And maybe it's more fun to do it with Into The Great Wide Open itself. Bonne Suits is, of course, also a brand for all ages or something. But Zeedijk 60 is really a platform for youth. So how cool would it be to make a Zeedijk 60 hoodie with you?"
There are also a lot of youths at the festival who know Zeedijk 60.
"Yes, let’s do it."
How cool! We’ll wrap it up soon, but just one random question. What is your favorite tattoo?
"I think I have two favorite tattoos. Two men kissing, I got them when I was nineteen years old. I also design them myself, and then discuss it with my tattoo artist. I really trust his taste very much."
"And this one, the dog without front legs is symbolic for me. I think dogs without front legs are the coolest thing there is. Check it out on YouTube, some can only walk on their back legs. And what I find really cool about it is that it really symbolizes something. It's really unfair, right? That he has no front legs? But he is still happy."
They still make it work.
"They keep running, they just go after that ball. Sometimes you are born without front legs, and I think we all are born without front legs. Everyone has stuff on their conscience. And you better be that dog, otherwise it just doesn’t make much sense."
Thank you for your time, it's great that you wanted to talk to us for a bit. Hopefully we'll see you at the festival next year.
"I'll definitely be there next year!"
The only one over 18 who is welcome in the hangout of De Jeugd. You will get a special De Jeugd wristband.
"I want that!"
Read more about De Jeugd here. Would you like to join De Jeugd? Then email sam@intothegreatwideopen.nl.
Photos by Tom van Huisstede.
