Published by SEVENSTORE
Author: Millie Throp
Originally born in small-town Lidköping, Sweden, stylist, writer, and brand consultant, David Hellqvist, busies himself between Stockholm and London contemporarily, tooling the direction of image campaigns for the likes of Osprey and C.P. Company through his governed creative agency, Document Studios, before showing face at earmarked events along the fashion calendar – all in a day’s work.
Panning back, where the multihyphenate’s affection for menswear encouraged his impulsive migrating to London at the age of 21, a subsequent stint working on the city’s outlet floors – modestly Dover Street Market – would attach the now 44-year-old to the necessities of emboldened dress. Favouring characterful outfitting since, strengthened by the one-off Supreme suits and technical sportswear forming an archive on his Instagram, Hellqvist accepts intention as his talisman in interdisciplinary meddling. Adding dimension to the often surface-level fantasies of editorial; “realism is key,” he assures.
Translating visibly purist strokes, Hellqvist’s artistic refinement has sought many opportunities for outward expression. Namely, following a journalism degree at London College of Communication in 2005, before a later stretch as editor for Dazed Digital, Hellqvist would soon seek an audience for his impassioned tongue. Engendering his contributions for style manual, PORT Magazine, speaking on the rise of outfitters and interviewing a nascent Kiko Kostadinov, his positioning at the crux of menswear semination today proves testament to his will: progressing (as ever) with purpose.
Retaining selectivity within storytelling, garnering a position as contributing editor for publications like Orienteer Mapazine, Hellqvist harnesses a further sartorial closeness through styling, portraying the spreads of brands he has long respected. Leaning frequently on the trappings of Eastern utility with constructed looks from labels like Needles and South2 West8, working with technical outlines threads realness once more, shifting away from the kinds of campaigns the practitioner has prior denoted “advertorial”.
Where portraying the non-contrived is a constant, Hellqvist migrates image through text, even chartering creative direction with his founding of Document Studios. Started as a publication in 2013, capturing the on-street hum of the first London Men’s Fashion Week, jotting the perspectives of onlookers above the biases of brands, the name Document now umbrellas a flourishing agency. Partnered with a roster of in-house filmmakers and photographers, Hellqvist helms a holistic mission, retaining “alternative storytelling” through many guises, whilst fostering a new generation.
In disseminating his efforts within the Document coterie, beside the brushing topics of personal style and cross-continental recreation, SEVENSTORE caught up with the pacemaker between episodes of work; play; fatherhood; repeat.
MT: As a practitioner of writing, styling and creative direction, artistic meddling seems second nature to you. With this, and with your Instagram showcasing some of your father’s prior film photography, has creativity always run in your family?
DH: My parents weren’t creatives per se, but we were always encouraged to experiment and develop creative skills. I’d say my mum had an eye for style though, and my dad worked with magazines and did some sort of rudimentary, DIY graphic design. My dad’s photography was more of a hobby rather than a creative calling. I’ve really loved revisiting his images over the last few years, especially as my own work moved from being text-based to being predominantly visually led, and to find common aesthetic ground.
MT: Growing up in Sweden, would you say your Scandinavian rooting has influenced your visuality at all, considering its reputation for stylistic minimalism and refinement? How did your later move to London aid this identity further?
DH: I don’t see myself as having a ‘Scandinavian style,’ not now nor while growing up. I moved to London aged 21 partly to get away from what I perceived to be a national, small-town mentality. The music and style coming out of London is what made me move over, so I very early on identified more with that than the homegrown brands I came across while living in Sweden. Arriving in London, I had a list of five stores – the likes of Duffer, Hideout and Pineal Eye – that I went to see straight away. Those stores also sold Japanese, Belgian, American and Italian brands, so not only did I discover ‘British style’ here, but London became the prism through which I saw fashion from all over the world. I then worked at Browns and Dover Street Market, and that furthered my knowledge, appreciation, and understanding of these brands and designers.
MT: With your move to the UK seemingly motivated by the British menswear landscape, at what point did storytelling become as integral to you as fashion? Or, has narrative always held a place, complementary to both your styling and writing practises?
DH: I discovered and accessed fashion through working in stores. But along the way I did a degree in journalism at LCC. Writing was a lifelong ambition of mine; I just never thought I could do it in different country using another language (turns out you can). When I graduated, I combined the degree with my contacts, experience and knowledge from retail and became a ‘fashion journalist’. For quite some time, writing (and then editing) was my job, either employed at Dazed and Port, or as a freelancer. Over the years my focus changed, the visual aspect of my aesthetic point of view now dominates my work. I love working with stills and films but, as you suggest, the narrative is the red thread in the storytelling, whatever shape it takes.
MT: Within storytelling then, it seems capturing authenticity is important to you across your brand work and campaigns. So, would you also say this affection for realism over whimsy informs your personal wardrobe too?
DH: Yes, they’re connected. All my professional work stems from my personal point of view, even if – let’s say – I’m working on a story that’s far from what I actually wear myself, or if I’m collaborating with a brand, I don’t necessarily own anything from. That starting point and those references to my external and internal archives inform everything I do. Realism is key. Not only in how I dress but how I see the world and what I want my stills to say. It was probably a modus operandi that picked up while working at magazines and newspapers: you tell it how you see it; you report on the world and document what is going on around you. Too much of fashion is contrived and distorted for my liking, I like real clothes on real people doing real things, tweaked and primed of course, elevated and refined – but that’s the role of the art director in my book.
MT: Following a successful freelance career, what then motivated you to start Document Studios, working in a more collaborative manner? What do you think has enabled your agency to create so harmoniously since?
DH: Document Studios is my vehicle for collaboration, with brands but also with other creatives. It also suits me to work behind another name but mine – though some time when I freelance it will just be as David Hellqvist, but it’s nice to have the option of how to position and market yourself. The best part of Document Studios has been enabling myself that creative discovery: to go from being a writer to an art director. You can’t always do that when you work for someone else. But then, of course, at Document I’m also the producer and salesperson, so it’s not like I enjoy all aspects of it, ha!
MT: Besides founding Document Studios, what are some other highlights you have celebrated in your career, between your varying disciplines? Do you have any dreams for the future, personally or professionally?
DH: Career highlights have been travelling the world and seeing places I probably wouldn’t have gone to otherwise. I did fashion weeks in Seoul, Rio, and Moscow; I went to football matches in Madrid; basketball games in LA. I travelled to a small island north of Svalbard in the Arctic Circle with a brand. But actually, these days, it’s the shorter trips I’m excited about, scouting the area I live in for shoots and projects, meeting people in places I otherwise take for granted, and finding beauty in mundane, everyday details. And I’d be quite happy to continue doing that. Spending more time in Sweden now, after two decades away, it’s also nice to rediscover this country, and exploring both old and new places.
MT: Finally, outside of your bustling schedule, what are some of your other interests and pastimes? Are there any hotspots you frequent between your residence in London and Stockholm?
DH: My daughter is seven, so I end up playing a lot with LOL dolls. I try and balance that with gravel rides and watching Spurs play. Overall, I find it’s a combination that works well for me.