MALMSTE
STYLIST & FASHION DESIGNER
Charlie is a costume designer whose work centers on creating immersive, character-driven narratives through clothing. From an early age, he cultivated a passion for aesthetics and self-expression, which has evolved into a unique design approach that celebrates the playful, unconventional, and raw. Drawing inspiration from everyday personalities and authentic moments, Charlie integrates humor and intentional imperfections into his creations.
HOW WERE YOU INTRODUCED TO WORLD OF ART AND DESIGN?
For the first 5 years or so of my life, all I did was sit on the kitchen floor in front of a mirror and study myself. It made me feel so calm, unlike today where this activity kind of has the opposite effect. I dressed up beyond recognition and experimented with my looks a lot. There were trousers on my head to mimic long hair, there were heels and very questionable young drag. You could say that this was when a little gay man was born. Kidding. Not. It was never a choice for me to devote my life to aesthetics.
All this in parallel with being very very obsessed with myself. That must change soon I hope, it will probably be interesting for about fifteen minutes more. Today I don't have the same obvious approach to creativity and making stuff. From time to time, it costs a lot to walk into that room, but outside of it, I guess one is very fumbling and something has to happen. Then, as I said, I am a person who very easily becomes obsessed with things and then I need to make something of it.
WHAT IS ESSENTIAL FOR YOUR WAY OF WORKING?
In my work as a costume designer, I've been able to fulfil my need to build characters and create homes and universes for them in different ways through clothing. That way of working is very much infectious in how I approach my designs in just about everything. I am careful to set up a framework with a clear narrative and it must always be fun. Things are allowed to be ugly and wrong and silly and rough, it's just clothes. And I'm just a little something trying to have some fun.
WHAT INSPIRES YOU AND WHY?
I am extremely inspired by all the women going partying on a “Finland's cruise”, and big sisters buying cigarettes for their younger sisters in a city centre somewhere. I love them more than life itself.
IF YOU WEREN'T WORKING IN DESIGN OR ART, WHAT WOULD YOU BE DOING?
If I didn't work with design in one way or another, I would probably have become a shepherd. Or a karaoke hostess around the clock.
TELL US ABOUT AN IMPORTANT MILESTONE FOR YOUR WORK AND WHAT SIGNIFICANCE IT HAD FOR YOUR FUTHER PROCESS?
I guess a big and important milestone in what I'm doing was when I realised that you don't have to isolate yourself with your work in order to own it. It's wonderful to have colleagues and people around you who can help, tell you some truth and then you move on from that. And then you work. It's fresh air for me. Being in something together with others, it puts my paranoia on paus.
HOW HAS COPENHAGEN AS AN ENVIRONMENT HELPED TO SHAPE YOUR WAY OF WORKING?
Copenhagen is a strange place. Young and alert (a thing of the past), you find yourself at some goodbye-party for someone you've never met, often on a rooftop in the middle of winter, with a taquito in your right hand and a 22-year-old fag hag of an architecture students expectations on you in your left. The one thing in the right hand often tastes better than the one in the left, but you get used to it. Then you go to the toilet together. You do as you're told and in the end you don't know which end of Nørrebrogade is up and which is down. But you simply can't hide from anyone in Copenhagen and it
suits my little universe where everything happens in public.
I don't really keep anything private.
WHAT ARE YOUR FAVORITE SPOTS IN COPENHAGEN AND WHY?
When I lived in Copenhagen, my favourite place was Hovedbangården, where life happens.
WHAT DO YOU SEE AS YOUR BIGGEST STRENGHT?
I am not a very serious person. My ego is quite small thankfully, although this statement indicates that it's pretty much the opposite, so I don't know. I am the most unanxious and anxious person I know at the same time. On a good day I can often just rock on while on other days I suffer from the debilitating folk disease of “questioning”, that's a big curse. At least I have a goal of being able to separate myself from what I do. Lol. I don't do very important things in this world but it will be a nicer place.
WHERE DO YOU DREAM OF GOING WITH YOUR WORK?
I dream of an overbooked calendar. It's so nice when it stings a little and the sweat is dripping. I'm saying this now, but then I think I want to move to the countryside.
WHERE ARE YOU IN LIFE RIGHT NOW?
Now I'm in my last year at SST in the metropolis of Borås, and I’m off to start working on my graduation collection and I'm looking forward to that. I have both big and small plans but mainly small. It will be wonderful to get going, then I'm done. Then I'll go back to working with film during the day and sit in my room and sew at night maybe. We shall see. I miss working a lot so I will do a lot of that, that is the plan.
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