Damir Doma

[Shucks]

When I say break I mean get a chance at exposure.

[syed]

Oh snap In which case, totally agree.

[Shucks]

sure. he still sounds bitter though.

[kbi]

I think it's also visible in the style of teaching in London... You would just have to compare the schedule's of architecture/design/art schools in london to those in Paris and you could see the difference quite well.

[kuugaia]

Thanks for the interview Shucks, was certainly educational for me at least. He certainly seems more business orientated than I had imagined.

[thejarc]

I also have to agree with Damir about everything over-the-top being considered as "creative". I really hate that. Creating a bright collection with weird prints and masks doesn't make a creative collection (yeah, I'm looking at you Mr Willhelm)

[SHYE_POSER]

He speaks with an outsiders point of view, about a city he knows very little about.
Alot of it has to do with the way the tutors @ LCF/CSM push the students into a certain direction.

Over the top can be considered creative the same as minimalism can. Many thought Damirs styling for the shows was over the top, but it is a show and that is what it is about, you put on a SHOW.
In the case of the students, many are not trying to make wearable clothes for their grad collections. They do get a bit crazy and wacky as this will be the only time they can do this.
Saying that, when i went to go see the CSM BA grad show last year, it was laughable. Half the collections where van bierendonk/wilhelm rips and some wher just ridiculous. One collection even looked like bertie basset of liquorice all sorts fame.
Out of the 20-30 collections there where only 3-4 which i could see going straight onto a rail at a store and selling well. The rest where pish.
Yes some students do get to show after graduating, but not on schedule. Some show at on-off others at vauxhall fashion scout etc etc. A lot of people get lost because in the unis there is not much focus on the business side of the industry. As Ledger said, most are clueless idiots.
Unfortunately many do not get multi million pound companies backing them after their second season.
There is a lot of REAL talent that gets lost in the system. Many designers that get the publicity are shit, Henry Holland is a prime example of a talentless shmuck who has done well, just through connections.

For example, on the MAN day, they used to showcase different designers each season,but for the past couple of years we get the same faces. James Long (first collection look promising) Christopher Shannon (2nd rate Kim Jones doing Moschino esque logo prints) and JW ANDERSON (isnt bad but not consistent.) Again its all about if you are in the scene with the right people that work for the right publications.

In terms of the buying, not many buys happen in London, it is used more as a showcase, as many of the int buyers will then go to Paris, where you can find the same labels from London showing in Showrooms/trade shows in Paris. So from a buyers perspective, if they are going to buy they will do it in Paris, because they can then analyse their budgets.

If you are considered avante garde Paris is the best place to show. Gareth was only able to do so because he won the ADNAM award, and was able to fund it.
The BFC needs a big shake up, and need to offer more support/guidance to young designers, instead of filling the schedules with designers who are stocked in bloody debenhams or fenwicks.

In Damirs case he is lucky that he has a team with the business mind to push him forward and help the company grow. I feel he wants to become a luxury house of sorts. Which is fine, you got to think big if you want make the moula.

(note to self :i must refrain from posting psychobabble on sundays)

[kuriz]

Thank you for translating that interview. It is really interesting to see these things from his perspective; the pro and cons and so. I don't know much about these 'deeper' things as I don't study design or anything similar myself but when I read you guys' comments about these young designers something strikes me: what exactly is it that you seek from them and their collections/shows?
I get that taste is taste and it differs a whole lot. Also that there is somewhat designs considered as 'good designs' and 'bad designs.' When that is said I just can't see what new inventions these young designers could make. Shye Poser, you say that only 3-4 out of the 25~ students' collections was sellable and say this as that isn't that many. I might be wrong, but isn't 3-4 quite acceptable? Even though someone study design and shapes most things have been seen or tried already, have they not; Even though you're a student with a creative mindset and lots of innovative ideas wont it always be a bit alike or rather behind something seen before?

[SHYE_POSER]

I was a student a long time ago. But you have a valid point. Invention in fashion or design in general is very rare nowadays. I feel its about re invention, and what differentiates one from the other is how YOU do it. You(as a designer/creator) must put your stamp on it. Let's take suits for example. What differentiates one suit from another? Cut, fabric, construction, but above all details. It is the details ( especially in menswear) that makes that design YOURS or different from x,y,z . I believe innovation rather than invention is what pushes fashion design forward. Innovation and re invention. That is my outlook on it. In regards to the sellable student collections, for schools such as those mentioned to only produce 3 + students work that is immediately sellable is abysmal. That is a only the students that have been selected to show! Its not even a third of those that are enrolled in the courses.

[525252]

Thanks for the interview. I imagine he's having money problems cause thats all that seems to be on his mind in the interview.

I'm not sure I understand what you're saying with the "sellable student work". I mean generally, isn't innovation/reinvention what doesn't make the money?

[HWith]

I mean generally, isn't innovation/reinvention what doesn't make the money?

Please re-read this and think it throught a couple of times! :-)

[Catfood]

http://vimeo.com/23950428

A waster is a practice weapon made out of wood, usually a sword.
It is the name of a king without a kingdom, stranded on a hostile island with a wooden sword and a crown, and confronted with the absurdity of his own existence. A man who spends all his energy continuously building and destroying the same stone walls on a land in which he reigns as his sole master.
It obviously reminds us of the myth of Sisyphus, compelled by the Gods to roll a boulder up a hill, only to see it roll back down, and to repeat it throughout eternity. But presently, this man is not desperate, and almost seems to be happy.
Waster is the revolt of the absurd Man.

The director first wrote the script and found the place. The choice of Denis Lavant as this king was then obvious and that the collection of Damir Doma would match perfectly with the character and the island's landscape (Inishmaan in Ireland).

[Church82]

Thanks for the interview, I find it very interesting.

I estimate Damir Doma, for me it is a great designer and he brought a real breakthrough.

with all these designers are copied with each other (even though I like and make me go crazy), he was able to bring a bit of novelty and change the rules of fashion (as Heidi Slimane at the time).

Unfortunately now is a businessman (as mentioned by other readers) and this is evident from his latest collection.

I am very sorry ! !

[MikeN]

Unfortunately now is a businessman (as mentioned by other readers) and this is evident from his latest collection.

I am very sorry ! !

You should be sorry because you're wrong.

[several_girls]

Thanks Shucks for posting up the interview.

Been hunting around for some DD stuff, I really dig the Sufi style he seems to draw on for his S/S clothes.