As part of Maastricht Jaar 2026, a year-long programme celebrating the city, its history, identity and future, FASHIONCLASH developed the Maastricht Helden Fashion Show. The project was presented during the Stadsparade, one of the major public events of Maastricht Jaar, bringing the city’s stories and communities together in a large-scale parade through the city.
For the Maastricht Helden Fashion Show, FASHIONCLASH brought together ten local fashion and costume designers and eight students from the Scenography & Costume Design programme at Toneelacademie Maastricht. Each participant was given a Maastricht icon as a starting point and challenged to create a contemporary costume based on their story, character or significance.
The aim was not to reconstruct historical clothing, but to ask a more imaginative question: what would this person, character or idea look like if we encountered them today? The costumes were presented as part of the Maastricht Year city parade on 13 September.
The resulting collection brought together historical figures, artists, scientists, activists and symbolic characters, showing how differently a shared local history can be interpreted through fashion. Together, the costumes created more than a collection of historical references. They offered 18 different ways of looking at Maastricht: through carnival, women’s rights, music, science, literature, architecture, knowledge, industry, sport, identity and collective memory.
Chiron Floris — Elisabeth Strouven
Chiron Floris was inspired by Elisabeth Strouven’s commitment to caring for people in need. This idea of zörg drage became a reflection on how we care for textiles today. Second-hand cotton shirts were transformed through embroidery and smocking, while an embroidered book carrying the word respect connects care for people with care for materials.
Marte Morel — Fama, godin van de roem
Marte Morel translated the Roman goddess Fama into a contemporary costume celebrating Maastricht and its inhabitants. Stars refer both to the city’s coat of arms and to the famous people connected to the city, playing with the idea that anyone might become a ‘star’.
Jolieke Kessels — Sint-Servatius
The starting point was the golden Shrine of Saint Servatius and, specifically, a small female face carved from amethyst. Jolieke translated the contrast between deep purple and gold into a costume about a woman who continues to shine despite being surrounded and almost overwhelmed by a male-dominated history.
Floris van Lammeren — Petrus Regout
Rather than presenting Petrus Regout only as an industrial entrepreneur, Floris van Lammeren wanted to acknowledge the workers whose labour made his success possible. The costume brings two worlds together: the jacket and blouse express status and ambition, while trousers and apron refer to factory work, functionality and physical labour.
Wievien Alberts — Mestreechter Geis
For Wievien Alberts, the Mestreechter Geis is less a person than a feeling: humour, individuality, playfulness and a particular way of being. These qualities became the basis for a playful costume filled with embroidered details, symbols and hidden references to Maastricht.
Linda Friesen — Karel de Grote
Linda Friesen’s fascination with historical clothing became the starting point for her interpretation of Charlemagne. The costume combines strong, armour-like shapes with rich velvet. Its red colour refers to the army, while the restrained silhouette reflects the image of Charlemagne as both practical and powerful.
Deniece Clermonts & Max Niereisel — André Rieu
For Deniece Clermonts and Max Niereisel, André Rieu became the starting point for a costume that translates the world of classical music into fashion. The two designers joined forces to create a dress especially for the Stadsparade, bringing together their different practices and experience. The resulting look connects the theatricality of Rieu’s performances with the expressive qualities of couture and costume, turning the Maastricht violinist and conductor into a larger-than-life fashion character.
Emma Magermans — De Ingel vaan Mestreech
Emma Magermans focused on the city’s guardian angel as a symbol of protection, freedom, femininity, pride and connection. Rather than reproducing the recognisable figure, she translated these qualities into a contemporary silhouette, exploring the relationship between strength, identity and belonging.
Senna Cuenen — ’t Mooswief
A lifelong carnival celebrant, Senna Cuenen approached ‘t Mooswief as a symbol of carnival, togetherness and Maastricht identity. Her costume combines carnival colours with a fabric vegetable wreath, referring to the women from the surrounding villages who traditionally sold vegetables at Maastricht’s market.
Jessie Römkens — Emma Kok
Jessie Römkens was drawn to Emma Kok’s ability to transform vulnerability into strength and to use her voice to create space for others. The costume explores this tension between vulnerability, visibility and personal strength.
Michelle Cornelissen & Sabina Schreurs — Willy Brokamp
The designers focused on the tension between talent, fame and identity. Willy Brokamp became a way to explore what happens when extraordinary talent turns into an identity shaped by public expectations. Their interpretation questions whether a public image is something we create ourselves or something created around us.
Tiel Janssen – Tiel Janssen
The project also included Tiel Janssen, who was invited by FASHIONCLASH not tointerpret another Maastricht icon, but to participate as an icon herself. Tiel Janssen (82), visual artist and maker from Maastricht, moves between costume, jewellery andsculpture. Using unconventional materials, she translates thoughts, feelings and emotions intomatter. Her participation in FASHIONCLASH highlights the living artistic practice as an integralpart of Maastricht’s cultural heritage.
The Toneelacademie Maastricht students
The project also became an educational collaboration with eight students from the Scenography & Costume Design programme. Their costumes were developed through the same process but developed through a moulage workshop led by Nana Rossbach.
Mats Gerards — Edmond Hustinx
Mats became interested in the creative possibilities Hustinx might have explored had he been able to devote himself fully to art. The costume brings together his artistic side and his connection to the family’s soap industry. Canvas and paintable materials refer to the artist, while washed-out colours and a washboard reference the soap factory. The result reflects both what Hustinx was and what he might have become.
Merlijn Vermeulen — Matthaeus Herbenus
Merlijn was drawn to Herbenus’ curiosity, intellectual interests and fascination with history, philosophy and architecture. Renaissance imagery and Greek philosophy inspired a contemporary armour-like silhouette. The armour becomes a metaphor for knowledge: something that protects, gives strength and helps us navigate the world.
Manon Peters — Pieter and Franciscus Romanus
The Romanus brothers’ architecture and the Sint-Servaasbrug became the basis for Manon’s costume. She translated the structure of the bridge into clothing, connecting different materials, shapes and periods. The result turns the costume into a reflection on a monument that has connected people for centuries, while reminding us that such structures and their futures cannot simply be taken for granted.
Demi Overmars — Andrée Bonhomme
Inspired by Bonhomme’s music and her refusal to compromise her artistic freedom during the Second World War, Demi created a dark and elegant silhouette. Strong materials, sharp shapes and black strips reference piano keys, while feathers refer to Bonhomme’s motto: “Si tu veux être libre et fort, travaille!” — if you want to be free and strong, work.
Photography: Jurgen de Vries
