by 
The details in a Zana Bayne creation are evident the second you get your hands on it; whether it’s the sculptural forms of a bustier, countless precisely placed rivets, or surreal embellishments like those spotted on her Fall ’15 runway, every piece is intricately crafted. They’re all meticulously made by hand by Bayne and her team in the line’s New York atelier, and have been spotted on everyone from Debbie Harry and Lady Gaga to Beyoncé.
How did the custom pieces forLemonade come about? Could you talk about the process behind making those styles?
We have worked on projects for Beyoncé in the past, and we have worked on projects with stylist Marni Senofonte in the past, so when we were contacted by Marni in December to design and produce 30 antebellum-inspired leather harnesses for a secret Beyoncé project in New Orleans, it felt really exciting. Those pieces ended up being worn by Beyoncé’s dancers during Lemonade, but between the making of those pieces and the release of the video [last weekend], we did the Super Bowl halftime harnesses, as well as a pink ruffled harness look for Beyoncé’s dancers for the Formation tour.
How would you describe your relationship to technology, where design is concerned?
I would say that technology has very little to do with our design process. I sketch with pens and pencils. I prefer patterning with paper. I like to be very hands-on when developing samples. I believe in emotional responses to clothing. Much of what we do focuses on the senses: the curve of a corset against the waist, the beauty in leather that changes its tone naturally as it ages, and, of course, the scent of leather. These sensations cannot be replicated through data and LEDs.
