Joseph William Raidt is a German designer and Creative Director who is carving out his place among the next generation of designers. His path began at AMFI, where he graduated in 2023 and drew attention as a Lichting nominee.

Joseph’s design language is rooted in disrupting the status quo; pushing fashion into new territories. He naturally gravitates towards surreal, sculptural forms that stretch the boundaries of human anatomy. The result of this ongoing exploration is his newest project, ‘People on People’, developed with support from the Amsterdam Fund for the Arts (AFK).

‘I am standing in the train during rush hour,’ Joseph recalls. ‘A small wagon saturated with what seems like half the city’s population. Everyone squishing and squeezing up against one another… Each body — no longer fixed, but mutable.’

That fleeting scene of involuntary proximity became the starting point for ‘People on People’.

On November 20, we were invited to experience this body of work at Felix Meritis. As the show was about to begin, the lights dimmed, and a sense of stillness settled over the room. Suddenly, the sounds of sewing machines, clicking heels on wooden floors, and whistling steam irons filled the space – a teleportation into Joseph’s atelier.

Shortly after the models appeared: the narrative unfolded further. Shorts with attached legs created the illusion of a kneeling figure fused with the model itself. Uncanny yet strangely intimate. The essence of the collection traced back to Joseph’s rush-hour observation: bodies pressed together, limbs overlapping, postures shifting to occupy whatever space remains. The show was a reminder of the interconnectedness we might lose sight of in a digitally connected yet socially atomized world.

I can’t help but wonder which shape Joseph’s vision will take next.