By intertwining technology, sustainable fabrics, and customizable silhouettes, Lauer has given the one-piece garment a much-needed makeover that rivals contemporary luxe brands.

The award-winning artist, scenic, and costume designer is no stranger to creating statement fashion pieces. Andrea Lauer has outfitted musicians and Broadway, TV, and film stars for years, taking their wardrobes to new heights. From Billy Joe Armstrong to Melissa Etheridge, now she’s more than ready to adorn the rest of us with her stylish jumpsuits.

I love fashion. Always have. As a kid, my older cousins would parade their fabulous eighties shimmery threads at family functions. They had the build for all types of clothing. I didn’t. I was short and plump and wore what was flattering and unexciting. One recurring fashion memory in my childlike mind involved an iridescent gold lamé jumpsuit with accentuating attributes my cousin once wore. She resembled a golden goddess ready to climb into her Formula One racing car with the same hue as her outfit. At a book signing in NYC’s Gotham restaurant, I came across someone wearing a jumpsuit reminiscent of this sparkly one-piece designed by Andrea Lauer.

Lauer had models of varying body types and ages wearing her whimsical fitted jumpsuits. What struck me the most was that each piece looked completely different on each model, as if the garment was an extension of their personalities. There was a sea of jumpsuits in black seersucker, navy with white pinstripes, metallic, a rich, satiny blue that reminded me of a beach in Cote d’Azure worn by a sixty-something model that slayed the look. Think Debbie Harry meets the lead singer of The Runaways, Cherie Currie. I was mesmerized.

I chatted with Andrea Lauer, Founder and Creative Director of Risen Divison, a fashion brand specializing in the cult and art of the jumpsuit. She shared her insights into sparking a renaissance of the one-piece garment.

M. Vizcaino: What was the impetus to create a fashion line centered solely on one garment?

A. Lauer: My background is in clothing and costume design, working in theatre and film, television, and music. A few years ago, I decided to launch Risen Division and open a store that doubles as my atelier and studio for all my other projects. I’ve always been curious about the history of the jumpsuit, not just in fashion but also in its connotations in our culture. Studying costume history, I discovered the inventor of the one-piece garment was Ernesto Michachelles, an Italian futurist who went by the pseudonym of Thayaht. He wanted to make a utilitarian garment available to the public and printed the design in the newspaper for anyone to make. After learning this, it sparked an interest in the garment, as an artist looking at what clothing can tell you about a moment in time. From there, I started looking at space and space travel. In space, you need to wear a one-piece garment. In other cultural carriers of this idea of uniform in our society, predominantly used for incarceration, mechanics, and workers in varying industries — historically, the jumpsuit is representative of the uniform of the masses. I wanted to take this concept of the uniform and the masses, flip it on its head, create a garment that was an elevation of the individual, and adjust the perception of the jumpsuit — how to step into it. And that’s when Risen Division was born.

M. Vizcaino: What’s the meaning behind the brand name?

AL: Garments used for the division of labor. That’s where the division comes from. But then I considered taking it to a higher power if you raise something to the square power in mathematics, like R-squared. The idea of dividing labor, bringing it to the masses with a different version of workwear encompassing couture, in how it’s made, and raising the individual aesthetic through the garment. The concept for the brand also materialized from people in history. I love literature and am inspired by people who have had an unusual path, broken barriers, and impacted culture.

MV: Which figure in history did you choose for your first design?

AL: My muse for my first jumpsuit is Virginia Woolf. I named it the Woolf piece. Although she disliked fashion, she moved through life by her own rules, not letting societal conventions dictate her existence. Another inspiration for one of my signature jumpsuits is the Quimby, an homage to Harriet Quimby. She was the first female aviator (not Amelia Earhart) to acquire a pilot’s license and travel across the Atlantic on a plane in a violet flight suit — and the original Quimby is a plum metallic jumpsuit. My pieces reflect the contributions these fascinating outliers made to society. It’s important for me to imbue their stories through design and capture the details.

MV: You mention sourcing sustainable materials to make your garments on your site. Can you walk me through the process of creating your jumpsuits?

There are two ways I think about jumpsuits: style and material. I’ve created seven different styles. Each of the styles is based on a person from history. I created a specific collection based on a movement, not a person, called the Bauhaus Collection. I wanted this collection to be accessible to every human, not just one person; it’s unisex and for every gender. What does the material tell us, the fabric and the weave? It has to tell a story. I’m inspired by seersucker, the traditional fabric for the gentleman’s suit of the South. I found a Japanese company, a mill, that makes sustainably produced seersucker using low water consumption and organic cotton with high twists, a strong material with high longevity. That means that it can withstand washes and is stain-repellant, an elegant and functional material. I interchange materials based on seasons and what’s available. I was thinking about scarcity wisely. Just because we have small amounts of something doesn’t mean we can’t use it. Scarcity challenges my design sensibility and forces me to think outside the box of mass production and design something special. I’m sustainable by nature, and it echoes in everything I do. People can come to the shop in Brooklyn and try on ten different jumpsuits with one-of-a-kind embroidery, sequins, or vegan leather (materials that can’t be reproduced) and leave with an incredible piece. Customizable jumpsuits that aren’t available on the website.

M. Vizcaino: What are your plans for Risen Division? How do you see the brand evolving?

A. Lauer: Risen Division focuses on enhancing the jumpsuit’s beauty in its one-and-done practicality. You can style it up or down by adding something and transforming it from day to night. I’m a fan of all jumpsuits. I even had a jumpsuit party, encouraging guests to wear their favorite designs. I’d love to collaborate with other brands. My dream is to reimagine the flight attendant’s uniform and create a jumpsuit that embodies the service they provide, transcending their individuality.

Andrea Lauer’s creative work in scenic and fashion design and her innate understanding of materials share a common theme of design and body composition. Her curiosity about the human form has led her to create designs with AI and solve design challenges, pushing the boundaries of the one-piece garment while maintaining a sustainable business model.

According to Lauer, “Technology can aid human design but not replace it.”

Andrea Lauer is a maker at heart. She believes the Risen Division is a meditation on the body, with the one-piece garment as the vessel. This reflects the brand’s mantra: “In jumpsuits, we trust.”

Click here to shop Risen Division’s spectacular, versatile, sustainably made jumpsuits. You can also visit her Brooklyn storefront for a custom-made piece.