Name: Aida Korman
Occupation: Fashion Designer
Who were your fashions influences growing up?
My Italian design and couture education; coolhunting experiences on London’s streets, markets and museums; traditional Bosnian craftsmanship and fashion business development in Prague were influences that formed my fashion energy which recalls the mix of cultures, ethnicities and religions.
What was the first item you ever made?
I believe dimije, harem pants. They’re amazing clothes, one can wrap themselves into three to twelve meters of fabric required to make a dimije. A few years ago I made a collection called Dimije 501 named after Levi’s 501. A Dimjie is the only outfit still represented in contemporary Bosnian women’s wear after five hundred years.
You worked for Alexander McQueen, what was that experience like?
It was an intense and romantic experience just like Alexander McQueen’s style. At the time he was showing in the glass factory and the whole collection seemed to be based on impossible possible combinations. I liked it because it inspired me to continue on my handcraft research.
What type of woman do you design for?
Strong and seductive, nostalgic but not fragile at all, women in politics, women who stay at home with the children, women at leisure…..
What difficulties have you found in your career, and do you think there is enough support provided for fashion designers today?
Everybody knows about the gay lobby in the fashion industry. As a woman it worked against me but I was lucky enough to gain big fans ranging from photographers to journalists.
There is not enough support for fashion designers but I’m not looking for support, I just need a fair share partner.
If you could start your career again, what would you do differently?
First I would study then apply it to my work but for me it had happened differently because of the 1992-95 war in Bosnia. However I did learn something from people’s resistance under siege; they remained so innovative in knitting or weaving, hand sewing and embroidering even when working only under a candle light.
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve been given?
Not to make compromises, always to be ahead of a time, run slowly and the time will come.
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