The Icon Book

A REBEL IS BORN

When was Hidesign founded?

Hidesign was established in 1978 by Dilip Kapur‚ who returned from the United States to India after earning a doctorate in International Affairs․ Dilip Kapur went to Auroville to work toward its goal of global peace and had a long-standing personal interest in leather bag design and craftsmanship․ Hidesign was born out of the need to be distinct from the uniformity and synthetic flatness of the mass market. It was almost like giving shape to an instinctive aversion to painted, patented leathers that lose all semblance of naturalness. Hidesign products were unique compared to other products available in Europe and North America at the time and reflected values of non-discrimination and freedom and equality․ The products were initially sold in specialty shops in San Francisco‚ London‚ and Melbourne and gained recognition for their innovative design․

THE RELAUNCH OF HIDESIGN’S ICON-BAG COLLECTION

What is the Icon Collection?

The Icon Collection is a redesign of Hidesign's original designs from the 70s and 80s․ The original Hidesign product line was limited and reflected the company's original values: mobility‚ simple styling‚ high-quality materials‚ and fashionable independence․ The Icon Collection maintains other qualities of the original products‚ including vegetable-dyed leather‚ brass hardware‚ cotton and leather lining‚ and styles that have been popular for over 48 years․

UTOPIA BY THE SEA

Why is Hidesign based in Pondicherry?

Pondicherry‚ India's former French colony on the Coromandel Coast‚ is the founder's hometown and the company's home base․ European colonial architecture and other influences remain prominent in Pondicherry․ Other influences from Pondicherry's cosmopolitan past, and the presence of the Sri Aurobindo Ashram and Auroville community have drawn artists and other international residents to Pondicherry for many years․ Combined with other Tamil influences‚ these factors have helped create a unique artistic culture in Pondicherry that influences Hidesign's designs․

VEGETABLE-TANNED LEATHERS

Why does the colour vary across a single bag?

Each hide is hand-painted․ Hidesign prefers vegetable-tanned leather for its ability to age with changes in appearance․ Dilip Kapur learned hand-painting techniques from an artisan in Florence and continues to use that artisan's techniques‚ which involve brushing on paint and waxing the leather․ Differences in color and texture between and within pieces of leather are features of the product and process‚ not defects․

DISCOVERING E․I․ LEATHERS

What is E․I․ leather?

E․I․ stands for East India․ This leather was originally sourced by the founder in Denver‚ Colorado․ It was supplied by a British source and prized as the highest-quality vegetable-tanned leather suitable for hand dyeing in the United States․ Characteristics of E․I․ leather include a bright blond color and high durability and recovery․ It was traditionally used in high-end shoes and bags made in the United Kingdom and Italy․ Research has traced the source of E․I․ leather to within ninety miles of Pondicherry․ The leathermaking process involves soaking hides for forty days in extracts of wattle bark and myrobalan seeds‚ followed by treatment with pungam oil to soften the hides․ Knowledge of this process has been passed down through families in the leathermaking trade․

A SUSTAINABLE WORLD

What is Hidesign's stance on chrome tanning?

Hidesign uses the E․I․ process, unlike over 90% of tanners in the industry who’ve switched to chemical tanning for economic and efficiency reasons and because of a shortage of skilled labor․ Environmental effects of chemical tanning included health problems for people living in areas that had been irrigated with wastewater from tanneries and the collapse of a mutually beneficial relationship with farmers․ Hidesign found and hired the few remaining E․I․ process experts over forty-five years ago and is one of the industry's pioneers in ecologically friendly tanning․

THE GODS LOVE BRASS

Why are the fittings solid brass?

Brass-casting techniques continue to be preserved in southern India․ Local artisans still produce sand-cast religious artefacts and lamps․ Brass is not commonly used to make hardware for bags because it is expensive and time-consuming to finish․ Most bag hardware is made of zinc alloy or steel that has been electroplated․ Hidesign draws on the art of sand casting from artisans in temple communities in southern India․ Each buckle is sand cast and finished by hand the same way they make sculptures of the gods.

HUMAN HANDS HAVE SOUL

How are the bags manufactured?

There is no assembly line․ Bags are numbered by hand and crafted by teams of three or four workers who have trained for many years as apprentices to a master․ Special knives are used for cutting‚ and it takes about two years to learn this craft because it is difficult to find matching sections of leather by sight․ Craftsmen at Hidesign still knot every stitch ending by hand․ Most employees have been with the company for more than twenty-three years.

THE WOMEN OF HIDESIGN

Who makes the bags?

The workshop was founded by men in the cobbler trade․ Women now make up over ninety per cent of the workers․ The great skill and delicate fingers of the women at Hidesign represent a revolution in social norms that we are proud of.

BEAUTY IN SIMPLICITY

What is the design philosophy?

"There is a great beauty in simplicity․". It is still the basic design philosophy that drives Hidesign today. The clear lines of Hidesign bags emphasise craftsmanship and the high quality of the full-grain natural hides and solid brass we use.

ICON COLLECTION 2014 consists of

Castello 1980 · Grazia 1981 · Safari 1981 · Roberto 1983 · Sasha 1983 · Big Boxy 1985 · Small Boxy 1985 · Parma 1989 · G․I․ 1991 · Roma 1993 · Marina 1994