Iris van Herpen graduated from the ArtEZ University of the Arts in Arnhem in 2006[5] and interned at Alexander McQueen in London,[6] and Claudy Jongstra[7] in Amsterdam before launching her own label in 2007.[8] The Dutch designer debuted her first Couture collection 'Chemical Crows’, at the 2007 Amsterdam Fashion Week.

Van Herpen pioneered the use of 3D printing techniques applied to the world of fashion[10] and shown her first 3D-printed garment at the 2010 Amsterdam Fashion Week. The ‘Crystallization’ top was inspired from the phase transition water undergoes when it crystallizes. The garment was 3D printed from white polyamide.

Van Herpen's work can be described as interdisciplinary as she draws inspiration from professions outside of fashion and the arts. Therefore, the designer creates much of her work in collaboration with professionals working in fields of science, technology and architecture.[12] For example, her 2020 collection, Sensory Seas', drew inspiration from both marine ecology and the work of Spanish neuroanatomist Ramón y Cajal.[13] In 2010, Iris van Herpen undertook her first collaboration outside of fashion, when she collaborated with the Dutch architectural firm, Benthem Crouwel Architekten to create her ‘Water’ Dress.

Critics describe Iris van Herpen's work as both organic and innovative.[14] With New York Times journalist Vanessa Friedman stating: "It's not that she rejects the heritage of the couture, she just redefines it with modern tools. Once upon a time the sewing machine did the same.”