Iris van Herpen dress covered in glowing algae is "cultivated rather than constructed"

Fashion designer Iris van Herpen has worked with biodesigner Chris Bellamy to create a “first-of-its-kind living look”, a dress made from 125 million bioluminescent algae that emit light as it moves.

The dress, which opened Van Herpen‘s Sympoiesis Autumn/Winter 2025-2026 haute couture show at Paris Fashion Week, was made from Pyrocystis lunula, a bioluminescent algae cultivated by Bellamy.

The algae were grown in seawater baths with a nutrient gel over several months, before being moulded into a protected membrane and embedded into the dress.

“Caring for the garment, and for the 125 million Pyrocystis lunula it contains, requires a symbiotic relationship and redefines the creation traditions entirely, as the garment is cultivated rather than constructed,” the fashion brand explained.

The designer worked with light artist Nick Verstand to create a light sculpture around the dress, which she called a “first-of-its-kind living look”.

It is part of Van Herpen’s ongoing exploration of new techniques and materials, which was also evident in the rest of the show.

Van Herpen was inspired by journalist David Attenborough’s film Ocean when creating the collection, which aimed to convey both the beauty of the ocean and the peril it is in.

For the Sympoiesis show, Van Herpen also worked with biotech company Spiber to create pieces made from its Brewed Protein, a biobased and biodegradable material made from fermented fibre.

The Brewed Protein was laser-cut, creating shapes that evoke coral reefs, and bonded to sheer organza.

Continuing the ocean theme, Van Herpen used Japanese airfabric and translucent carbon-fibre bonings for dresses that reference Turritopsis dohrnii, a biologically immortal jellyfish.

She also used blue and green ocean-like colours for the dramatic Noosphere look, which was made from organza stretched over carbon-fibre bonings.

A collaboration with artist Casey Curran resulted in a dress whose almost skeletal silhouette was informed by a microscopic view of the structure of bioluminescent algae.

The show’s final look featured ivory silk that Van Herpen draped on wave-shaped casts that were then coated with a layer of resin to create a “cresting wave held in suspension – just before the chaos of the rolling crash”, the brand said.

Van Herpen hoped that by using biodesign, she could help people reimagine how we use materials.

“This collection is a collaboration with nature itself,” she said.

“In this time of ecological emergency and biodiversity loss, biodesign invites us to rethink the way we ‘use’ materials, to visualise a future where all human design is not just inspired by nature, but integrated with it.”

“It highlights the interdependence between humans and nature, viewing the body not as isolated, but as an ecosystem – where fashion becomes alive, responsive, and deeply connected with the natural world,” Van Herpen concluded.

The designer’s previous designs have included the Earthrise collection, which was designed as a “living organism”, and a haute couture dress made from ocean plastic.

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