DAVID KOMA

Georgia has vividly emerged in the fashion world of late, and is establishing its name for holding attention-grabbing fashion weeks and promoting homegrown talent, as well as inviting big names, designers, international editors, buyers and a crowd of street-style photographers. Maybe Tbilisi does not stand next to Milan or Paris, but it really deserves a place on the global map of fashion.

The last Mercedes Benz Fashion Week held on November 3-7, 2016, at the Modern Art Museum (MOMA) turned out a very interesting event which also hosted the Mercedes-Benz spring/summer 2017 fashion campaign, highlighting the rebellious nature of the new and expressive model CLA Coupe in the fi lm ‘Burning Desires’ by Christian Larson. Fire played a key part in the campaign and was chosen as a metaphor for desire and a powerful visual. Musician Eliot Sumner (daughter of the legendary musician Sting), and famed model Lucie Von Alten are the faces of the fi lm, while the campaign design belongs to illustrious London-based Georgian designer David Komakhidze, known as David Koma.

Koma showcased his fi rst collection at the age of 15 after studying Fine Arts in Saint Petersburg. He, for his SS11 collection at London Fashion Week, received a BFC Newgen Catwalk sponsorship. His graduate collection of sculptural, body-conscious dresses embellished with metal tubes and multicoloured chains won the Harrods Design Award. Koma was the Vauxhall Fashion Scout’s Merit Award winner in 2009 and in December 2013, House of Thierry Mugler announced that he would be their new artistic director. He is one of the favorites of Jennifer Lopez, Gwyneth Paltrow, Beyonce and other celebrities.

Though he was very busy and visiting Tbilisi just for two days, David Koma found a couple of minutes for Georgia to See Magazine:

DESCRIBE YOUR PERSONALITY.

I’m a mixture of funny and serious.

WHAT INSPIRES YOU MOST WHEN CREATING NEW COSTUMES?

For me, as a starting point, the woman’s body and its silhouette is the most inspiring.

YOUR MOST VIVID IMPRESSIONS ABOUT GEORGIA?

Georgia is always associated for me with incredible churches, hospitality and gourmet food.

IF NOT FASHION…

Different cultures… I mean, I travel a lot, meet different people, so if not fashion, I would fi nd myself in different art forms and cultures.

WHAT CAN YOU ADVISE YOUNG DESIGNERS?

It’s extremely important to work hard, differ from others and fi nd individuality.

A FEW WORDS ABOUT YOUR FUTURE PLANS.

I work really very hard and I often say to myself: keep working, keep going and create something new and interesting!