What happens when fashion and art collide? How are these two connected?
As a visual model for contemporary interpretation of art, fashion has indeed an elevated position.
To learn more about the relationship of art and fashion, we have interviewed some talented Armenian artists and have rounded up our favorite questions and answers.
How did your career of jewelry design start?
I started to draw ornaments and this kind of stuff by the end of my university years. I started to make minimal designs for the jewelry, but the main idea was to make some pieces that people love, for instance, hearts.
I approached this from the side of architecture and it’s how it works.
What is the meaning behind your brand “IAMC Designs”?
“IAMC Designs” is like I am sea. It is named after Armenian history, being from one sea to another sea as we are all drops in a big sea.
How are architecture and fashion connected?
I believe architecture is a field of art and at the same time in architecture part of art plays a big role besides technical part, but what I love in architecture is exactly the combination of technical and artsy part, same as in fashion, that is how I see fashion and architecture, this is the common things between these two, it contains part of creativity and part of techniques.
There is a famous belief that art and fashion have forever been entwined. How do you see this statement?
I think that fashion and art are inseparably connected as both of them reflect everything that happens in the world as two different spheres.
Despite their inevitable connection, I see a huge functional difference between these two spheres, I just think that fashion is more objective and practical, while art is vice versa.
In this case are these two fields (art & fashion) different, or fashion belongs to art?
I suppose that fashion’s partially obedient to art, as it absorbs massive art forms, gains a particular form, and turns into something familiar and practical.
What do you think, what happens when fashion and art collide?
If we compare fashion and art as two competing fields, I think that the more competitive the more quality results, and we see that thanks to the collision of fashion and art, there have been a lot of collaborations in recent years.
We know famous collabs between Chanel & Picasso, Elsa Schapiarelli x Salvador Dalí, Louis Vuitton x Richard Prince, this list can be so long. But of course not every single artist enters the words of fashion. You have done the so-called collab with yourself when you put your works in design and make them ready to wear.
How did you come to the idea that your art should be transferred into design?
At some point, the art on the canvas or a paper piece has became not enough for me, and I wanted to go outside of the canvas and make it more recognizable, more interesting and fill it with various forms and by the ways, it is not about only clothing, as I am not producing only clothing collections, but also different items of interior and decor as I paint walls.
I just want to popularize art outside of art forms, bringing it to people’s everyday lives and at the same time making people’s lives better, more interesting, more beautiful, and full of kindness.
Since I am a painter, I am creating not only collections of clothing and other design items with my prints but also trying to collaborate with other brands who are professionals in their sphere.
I think that art plus other directions are very actual today and this tendency will grow and grow.
How are the UDIVILA patterns born?
In fact, the idea of patterns of UDIVILA comes from my favorite school subjects, history, and geometry.
The geometric forms turned into an idea for me and I started to work with geometric forms and colors.
For me, color is the most interesting thing ever, in paintings and photography, and I think that the connection of history, forms, and colors creates the pattern.
What is the meaning behind the names of UDIVILA patterns?
Naming the patterns is actually the most difficult thing, when the colors are finalized, we start to think about the names.
The ideas come to my mind while watching movies, reading books, traveling, since I have on my mind that I am going to create a pattern.
Who had the most influence on your works?
The first influencers that I got to get acquainted with and listen to their story and art, and who made a big impression on me, were the founders of Bauhaus, their idea, school, and the whole system, the geometric forms are predominant in their art so I got interested and deep-dived into the topic.
But when we are talking about fashion, currently my first influencer is Gucci, I love their shows, they are very creative and interesting to me.
What is your mission as a designer?
The main purpose is self-expression in the first place, showcasing what is going on inside your head.
What is the one thing you wish you knew when you started?
We were not business ready to present ourselves when we started realizing the store idea, I would be happy to pass several courses before launching it, but as we opened the store, we learned a lot on the go which slowed down the processes.
How did you decide to highlight art pieces of Armenian artists?
Since there was no such store in Armenia, we thought of opening a store to promote and present the works of Armenian artists in different countries.
As both I and my husband are representatives of the art field, we thought that there is a need to present art in Armenia, that is how this idea was born.
We have visited a lot of similar places abroad and thought why not open something like that in Armenia.
It has already been 2 years since we have had this store by which we try to promote Armenian artists.
Do you think that different items like souvenirs and clothes can serve as an art canvas?
We often present the art pieces in everyday items thus bringing art to our everyday lives as art teaches, develops a taste.
And that is how the idea of adding art to various items such as coasters came to our minds.