For London Design Festival 2026, Katerin Theys joined Danish textile company Kvadrat and architecture and interior design practice Conran and Partners for Body of Architecture, a collaboration exploring the relationship between clothing, textiles, material and architecture.

Initiated by Conran and Partners, the project brought together three disciplines through a series of interpretations of a single Katerin Theys coat design. Rather than changing the architecture of the coat itself, Katerin worked with a selection of Kvadrat textiles originally developed for interiors, allowing the weight, structure, pattern and character of each material to transform the same underlying silhouette.

The textiles included Hallingdal 65, Kvadrat’s first textile originally designed by Nanna Ditzel in 1965, alongside Firo, Apparel, Mirari, Otori and Twisted Flower. Their different constructions and references — from tartan and heavy tweed to Japanese forests, ancient kimonos and botanical forms — created distinct expressions of the same design.

The collaboration reflects Katerin’s approach to fashion as architecture for the body. Trained as an interior architect, she works with structure, proportion and movement while allowing each piece to adapt to its wearer.

The coat created for Body of Architecture can be reconfigured in several ways. Its sleeves can be detached and repositioned, while the piece itself can be wrapped and belted differently to alter its proportions and silhouette. Rather than prescribing one way of wearing it, the design invites personal interpretation.

Working with upholstery and interior textiles further strengthened the connection between Katerin’s two disciplines. Their density and structure create possibilities for volume, drape and form that differ from conventional fashion fabrics, turning each version of the coat into an object with its own architecture.

Body of Architecture was presented at Conran and Partners’ London studio from 15–18 September 2026 as part of London Design Festival.

On 16 September, Katerin demonstrated how the coat could be transformed and worn in different ways. The demonstration was followed by a conversation with Katerin Theys, Tina Norden of Conran and Partners and Miriam Varoli of Andaz London, moderated by architecture and design writer Catherine Shaw. The discussion explored how fashion, architecture and textiles respond to the body, material, movement and change — and the role adaptability can play in design at different scales.