Revolutionising Knit One Thread At A Time: Suzanne Oude Hengel’s Creative Journey

Words by Kristen Barwick

Suzanne Oude Hengel's childhood was once filled with continuous movement, moving from one country to the next, having once called India, Bhutan, and France her home. Her adventurous early years contributed to both her vibrant colour palette and her open and experimental approach to her work. Now based in the Netherlands, Oude Hengel calls herself a designer, technician, and programmer all rolled into one. Essentially, someone you wouldn't be able to put into a box even if you tried. 

Her love for exploration and research is evident in her work, where she questions and challenges the possibilities of knit. But it was her fascination with footwear that truly set her on the path to success. From her career-defining project as part of Future73 with Timberland to founding her own knit development studio, Knit In Motion, Oude Hengel’s journey has been one of continued development and growth. We caught up with the multitalented boss of knit to discuss when and how she became fascinated by knit, how footwear came into the picture, and what the future looks like for her as she continues to take risks in the world of knit with her Knit in Motion crew by her side.

If you had to summarise yourself in a few sentences, how would you describe who you are and what you do? 

I would say I’m a hybrid between being a designer and a technician/programmer. My work is very much anchored towards research, development and experimentation. I'm a very hands-on person, working both on and next to machines. This approach really allows me to research and question the boundaries of what the possibilities of knit are. 

You grew up in India, Bhutan and France. Do you think that experience influenced you as a creative?

I think it's mostly subconscious and intuitive, in a way. I would say my use of colour comes from Bhutan and India, as I grew up in Asia until I was seven or eight years old. Having the ability to adapt yourself easily to any place and not needing to have roots there is a great strength, which I’m lucky I have. Though, there were times I missed not having roots in one place. But, being able to feel at home wherever I was with just a few things of my own is something that helped me adapt to any situation I found myself in.

When did you first discover the application of knit within footwear?  

From 2010 to 2015, I did my Bachelor in Product Design at ArtEz in Arnhem, however, I wanted to learn more about textiles and my studies did not offer this option. In 2014, I did an erasmus exchange program and went to Aalto University in Helsinki to follow courses across their Textiles BA and MA courses. The exchange was the start of my journey within knitting, I was able to learn and get a basic and initial understanding of textile techniques, also learning how to knit and weave. This exchange led me to work autonomously on hand flat knitting machines.

I started noticing the application of knit for footwear (funnily enough) around the same time Nike had just released the Flyknit Racer. For me, footwear is a great medium to implement my findings. I like the size of the product and the weird shapes. There are also restraints and functionalities that you need to answer. All of these combined made it exciting to me. I also disagreed with a lot of ways shoes were being made. I was always thinking - why are there so many pieces? Why should it be done this way? Why do we need glue? I questioned the technicians that made the shoes, can it be done differently or what if we do it upside down? I would often manipulate materials and experiment with it, to try and see what it could be. I noticed myself always bouncing back to footwear, it was very fluid and it always came back to that application.

Then what inspired you to get into product design at University?

I grew up in France and after college, I wanted to go to university and do something which applied arts, product design or textiles. I did a foundation year, but I realised that in France it was very dogmatic and focused on the methodology, they taught us step-by-step how it should be done, which didn't really fit the way I learn or design. It was a combination of things and maybe an identity crisis that made me question ‘Who am I?’ I'm Dutch but I've only lived in the Netherlands for one year, so how does that work? I started to research and found a group called Droog Design. It was quite big at that time, in the 90s and early 2000s and it was made up of a lot of Dutch designers. So, I looked up where they studied and that’s how I found the school that I went to in Arnhem.  

At the same time, I applied for textiles and I got into a school in Paris - one of the best institutions to study textiles, which I ended up declining as I felt that textiles, on its own, was quite limiting for me. You don't really solve a question, or link it with a product, it just remains sheets of textile. Instead, I accepted an offer to study Product Design at ArtEZ in Arnhem. Product Design was a weird choice for me, but it covers a wide scope of both design and development. So, I think in the end it was the best decision I made, it's why I am able to think outside of the box. 

 

After graduation you attended a Santoni program in Shanghai, what was that like? Do you think it was a bit of a career-defining moment?

Yes 100%, because it happened in the summer of 2015 and that program was happening from October until December. It was straight after I graduated, so it was a nice way for me to be exposed to all the industrial machines for the first time. I really enjoyed being able to work with the technicians as a middleman, getting to know how a mill works and how wool gets spun. 

A pivotal moment for me was when I realised that I needed to work with different technicians so they could translate my ideas to the machines. For example, at one point I wanted to use a machine normally used for underwear to make a footwear upper. trial an underwear machine for footwear. I was trying to make a machine do something totally different from what it was built to do. I often get asked, ‘Why do you want to do that? That's not possible because it's way too stiff and you're going to break all the needles.’ But when I discovered it was possible and I established that relationship with the technician, I realised that they were solving the problem. They were handling the machine and they were translating my idea to the technique! Then they were coming back to me with ‘look what I did!

On top of that, there was a language barrier (both Chinese and technical language) and a lack of technical knowledge, not knowing what I should ask for, or what was even possible. From there I knew I wanted to learn how these machines work. I wanted to learn how to handle them, how to program them, how to discover what the options are, where I can push and where I can't. 

Oude Hengel’s drive to understand the unknown and challenge the norms of knit led her to land a year-long internship and subsequently a job at the TextielLab, which is a part of the TextielMuseum in Tilburg, where she worked as a technician operating the Stoll industrial knitting machines. While in her spare time, she made the most of her access to the facility, utilising the machines for her own personal projects. This immersive experience was what sparked a desire to embrace the hybrid role of a technician and designer. Following her tenure at TextielLab, Oude Hengel forged her own path, setting up her own sole business that quickly gained traction within the industry. Thanks to her expertise and original approach to knit, she breathed new life into the application of knit in footwear, leading her to work with many leading brands within the footwear world, most notably with Timberland as part of Future73.

What is your favourite project you've been involved with and why?

So far, I think Future 73 has been the biggest and most impactful project for my studio. Having the opportunity to work with the whole team at Timberland, whilst pushing your own ideas within a brand is quite unique. So this, for sure, is my number one. But I still have great memories of Construct! The team I worked with were exceptional and it was really well curated by Daniel Bailey. There was a really nice synergy, everybody was interested in each other's work and everyone was elevating each other.

What is Knit in Motion? Why did you start this company? and what does your team look like?

Knit in Motion is my knit development studio I founded, where we focus on knit development for both small and big companies. 

I had to take out a loan to buy my machine, with this being liable on yourself is not as secure as being liable on a company. I also found that sometimes people only saw me as creative, or as a one-person thing, whereas I thought that what I do was much bigger than that. Not having your company under your own name really helps to do that, it's much more versatile (and safer to take on contracts). Ultimately, I wanted to have a bigger entity that could hold different kinds of values and to be able to take on other services or even other products, not being so connected to me as a person or as creative.

The Knit in Motion team is made up of freelancers who come and go depending on the project. I have a project manager and a studio assistant at the moment, plus other people who are on when we need extra roles, like photoshoots or social media.

 

How do you see footwear evolving with knit in the next 5 to 10 years? What would your aspirations for it be?

I really hope that there are more investigations into the connection between the sole and the upper. I’ve never been a fan of the “glue-solution", because there are many more ways to attach an upper to a sole. Could the sole go beyond the upper or could the upper float over the sole? Adding more properties to the sole, so they can adapt to different types of terrain, temperature or activities. Or could the sole balance out elements that lack in the upper and vice versa? So we can work towards more modular solutions for easier recycling and more sustainable solutions. Ideally creating alternatives to using glue to connect the sole to the upper. Soles should become replaceable just like uppers. I feel like the work Nike has done with “Considered” and ISPA paves an intriguing avenue alongside many other brands.

Besides work, do you have any hobbies that you like to do?

Not really, only because my work is basically my hobby and very much covers what I spend most of my time on. I am just a very ambitious, workaholic, determined and maybe stubborn person. I grew up with hard working parents, they showed me that anything is possible, but it doesn’t always come easy, you need to put in the work. But I am trying to be more balanced and to have time outside of work to do hobbies. When I lived in France when I was 15 years old I used to be quite sporty, I did at least 20 hours of sport a week, and I competed in mountain biking competitions with friends. So, I hope to get back into mountain biking one day. 

But, where I like to be creative in a more simplistic way is with food. When I am cooking or baking I am relaxed and it forces me to get out of my head, not thinking things over. I also like to spend time just being home with my boyfriend and cat.

Do you think that getting back into mountain biking would influence your work in any way?

I loved the adrenaline rush, taking risks and stepping out of my comfort zone. I’m always inspired by the little things in daily life and the necessity of functionality. So, a new activity such as mountain biking would certainly bring a fresh perspective.

If you could go back in time, what advice would you give to your younger self?

You need to keep your eye on the horizon in tough times whilst you work towards your goals. I can remember a conversation with somebody in my team, she was so surprised that I did side-jobs when I just graduated. Luckily I can live from my work and my studio fully now, but it hadn't been that way previously. When I started, I worked in factories to just earn money instead of working at a company. It's totally okay to have a side job for any amount of time, you have to start somewhere!