GURAM GVASALIA

Guram Gvasalia, interview by Filep Motwary ©

FM: You officially took over as the creative director of VETEMENTS only in late 2021, and before that were known primarily as the CEO of the brand… Please tell us more about this transition. I wonder what was your perception of the fashion industry before you got involved in it? In what ways did your upbringing manifest itself in your adult life?

GV: As I founded the brand, VETEMENTS had been a part of my DNA from the beginning. Once you start your own company, you need to do every job, you are the designer, the developer, the CEO, and the cleaning person. I never wanted to be on the forefront of the brand, as I wanted to keep my life private, I was also in my twenties, fresh from school and it felt that I still had a lot to learn.

That‘s why the brand functioned as a collective, having senior designers and senior people in the company, but never calling anyone a creative director.
After the pandemic the industry has changed, and the brand felt the necessity to a have a person in charge, who can take full responsibility, and move the brand forward with a cohesive vision. As the founder and the longest employee of the company, I felt it was my time to come out and step into this role, that has fully grown on me in the past years.

Would you say your creative journey, both as CEO of VETEMENTS and later as the brand’s designer has led to changes within yourself and your personality?

I think time and life experience changes everyone. I felt I learnt a lot about myself and the industry, and personally grew. I had to grow up very early, as I went through war when I was a child, and a lot was taken away from me and my family. When you see bad things growing up, and learn to cope with them, they make you stronger, you also learn to appreciate every moment of your life, and to really cherish and enjoy the NOW.

Anything you do in life you should enjoy, and if you are not enjoying it, find something else that will speak to you and be close to your heart.
I rarely talk about it, but I was painting since I was a child, and spending almost every weekend in my teens in art school, painting, painting, painting…. It was such a happy time. At a certain point I was bullied into doing something I wasn`t very keen on as where I`m coming from being an artist was not considered as something  you do for living. I had to learn and explore other things, but art and fashion have always been my happy place.
I remember once a week there was this program on TV about fashion, it was on air for like 15 minutes, but it was the 15 minutes I was looking forward to the entire week. There was this music at the beginning of the program that would trigger something in me and for years I would hear this tune in my dreams. A couple of year ago, for  one of my shows, I managed to recreate that music, it was a very special show for me. To sum it up we constantly evaluate and change, but there is always “a little you” inside of everyone who remains unchanged.

Guram, it has already been 10 years since VETEMENTS was launched. What does VETEMENTS stand for today? How would you describe the ethos of your eponymous fashion label?

Well, ten years is a very important milestone for a brand. It is difficult, but possible, to get a hype, but after that initial hype to transition into becoming a household name is very tough. If you look at the 21st century there are handful of brands who have actually managed that.
Important to say that VETEMENTS has always been inspired by street, but we were never a streetwear brand, we would work with the top factories in the world, where most luxury brands produce, to achieve the highest possible quality for our garments. Factories are often shared by brands, and we would work with same manufactures as Dior, Chanel and Hermes. Translated from French VETEMENTS means clothing, therefore the main inspiration for the brand and me is clothes itself. I would ask myself if I had money to buy only 1 jacket, what would be the perfect jacket? Or if I had money for a pair of jeans, what would be the most
perfect jeans?

I also often get inspired by people in the streets, I could sit somewhere outside and watch different people pass by, and in my head, I would analyze what they are wearing and why they decided to wear it, and try to rework and exaggerated the proportions of their silhouettes. It is a fun thing to do, you should try it!

Talk to me about your parents, describe them. How do they see what you do? How much do they understand?

It was tough at the beginning, as we come from a place where what meant to be a designer was unclear to the older generation. My dad for a long time was questioning why I wanted to become a tailor, and how I was planning to sustain myself, but with time they became more involved and understanding. Now my parents are extremely supportive of what I do, they come to each show and constantly say how proud they are. In one of my recent shows they both got very emotional, my dad told me after the show – it was 1st time he ever teared up at a show, and that he`s been to many shows in his life. That show the music, the lighting, the clothes, the casting all somehow came together, it was an emotional moment for many.

Ever since you finished school in London and together with your brother you created VETEMENTS, you have regenerated the industry, turning it upside down with rigorous collections that were about re-establishing the context of fashion. Please tell us more about this revolution!

There is a lot written about how we changed the industry, and as flattering and kind it is to hear, it should be said by other people. To say it short we were in the right place, at the right time, probably doing the right thing. The industry tends to like being comfortable, and wants everyone to play by the same rules. Once something becomes conventional, it always becomes uninteresting and each generation wants to find their ways, and have their heroes.
It was time for change, we were very lucky in terms of timing, and the product we were doing. What also helped a lot was us being able to speak directly to the final consumer via social media, that helped us grow super quickly as we didn’t have the necessity nor the interest in the conventional model. Time will show if what we did was a revolution!

How pivotal was your obsession with street-wear in the ways you express and create fashion today?

It is probably more an obsession with people and what they are wearing and why they decide to wear things certain way, combining them with other things. I`m constantly observing what people are wearing around me, and my biggest inspiration comes from there. Every season I start a collection with a wardrobe. A trench coat? What shape should it be, what color should it be? Do we need to do it at all? I would be on the streets, and the only thing I would see in that moment would be trench coats. The key is not to think about other things, to avoid distracting thoughts, and honestly not to think at all. If you learn to stop the inner voice, you will see and hear so much more. You don`t need to travel to far ends of the world to find your inspiration, the inspiration is around you, if you open your eyes and you open your mind.

What is it that you try to communicate through VETEMENTS? Can a dress be more than a commodity?

For sure, a dress, is more than a commodity. None of us needs more clothes. Designing a good dress, is designing the attitude, it`s giving certain power the moment this dress is put on. Designing anything ask yourself who needs it and why? If you can reply who needs this particular dress and why, you are already on a right pass.

You seem to draw a lot of inspiration from your generation, which for the most part is nostalgically looking towards the future. Would you agree?

I think it is important to look at your generation but also at the younger generation to come. In fashion content, a daughter doesn`t want to dress like her mother, but the mother wants to dress like the daughter. So, it is vital to understand the time!

How possible is it for the past to feed the future? What is the most challenging aspect of your role as a designer?

Every designer has an expiration date. At a certain point you become less relevant. If you look at the history of fashion, and it`s not your brand, like with Miuccia Prada for example, no one survived the 10-year cycle. After 10 years you probably did too many collections, and as long as you are not able to update your esthetic and to reinvent yourself, you are passé. Karl Lagerfeld is the only one who managed to successfully stay in one brand and being relevant for multiple decades. The DNA of the brand is extremely important, and my role as a creative
director is to protect that DNA.

Tell me more about your perception of the body in the context of VETEMENTS. And more rhetorically, why do we have this need to distort the body through fashion? It goes on and on for centuries. Is it possible at the end to reform or re-apply the form of the body through fashion? 

Playing with proportions is extremely fun. One of my favorite collections VETEMENTS has ever done is a 16XL collection. The idea of oversized has been part of our identity from the beginning. For me Marting Margiela has always been my big inspiration, and I knew that my fascination with oversized had been highly influenced by him. When I went deeper in the research and analyzing it, I realized that Martin Margiela`s oversized was the size of our regular commercial collection, so I asked myself can I make the biggest oversized collection
ever done with proportions that are still wearable.

So I first made pieces in size 10XL, and when the 1st prototypes came back, they looked too small, I went up to 12XL, 14XL…. with 16XL I found my starting point. After sizing up the pieces in each category, I had to refit and re-cut every piece to balance them out and get to right proportions. The whole development process was extremely challenging, as most of the machines are not made for garments that size, and no one had experience making pieces that big, but once we managed to get through all the complications, it turned out to be just perfect. That collection played such an important role in writing the history of the brand.

What is the inspiration behind the SS25 collection? What was your mood board about? For the most part it seemed like a demonstration of past successful design achievements, right?

Your perception is very interesting, as there was not a single pattern used or carry over piece from the past in that show. As it was an anniversary collection it was super important to have the right nostalgic spirit, and it means we managed to create the right mood, atmosphere and collection that you felt this way.

Inspired by the global economic downturn and a consumer base increasingly wary of uncontrolled consumption, the collection is a statement on the need to rethink what fashion means in a world where the old systems are crumbling. With a show set inside the semi- abandoned mall, a collection draws on the ethos of “make new out of old” – an approach where existing wardrobe pieces are reworked and given new life. It speaks to a future where consumers no longer have the desire, or the means, to participate in relentless luxury consumption.

Instead, they adopt a DIY mindset, creating unique, conceptual pieces from what remains. It reflects a world where the stores are closed, and the opulent past of luxury fashion is bankrupt, both financially and creatively. It’s about taking what’s left, repurposing it, and challenging the idea that new always means better. It’s also about claiming back something that belongs to you, and falling in love with it again.

The true power of VETEMENTS has always been the feeling of belonging — a sense that you can be a VETEMENTS person without ever buying a single piece. This inclusive spirit is what has created a cult following for the brand and is manifested in this collection. You can recreate some of the looks without the necessity of purchasing them, still feeling part of the conversation and never feeling excluded or abandoned.

Do you think that fashion lacks certain elements today?

Omg, where do I start…. It is a very complicated time, not just for fashion, give it a couple of
years.

Tell me about your casting – a pregnant Carmen Kass, Gigi wrapped in a DHL-tape
dress, Heidi Klum, Travis Scott….

I love my cast, not just this season, every season. I like to work with people who enjoy what we do and who have fun working with us. Most of them have become friends, some of them are family by now. I work on the casting myself, and we don´t involve anyone external in this process, just me and a few people from my design team.

Do you think as a designer you need to have an awareness of fashion history? Can
everybody be a fashion designer?

Does a musician need to know how to play an instrument, and be able to play some classics? Not really, but it helps. Knowing the history, you can learn from other people´s mistakes. Also, history repeats itself. Before the right inspiration was everything from 20 years ago, now with the speed of everything, the time frame got shorter. Having general knowledge is for sure helpful in live.

I think everyone can be a designer as long as it`s a right door for them to knock on. Also, it`s all about your hard work and dedication. You can be born talented but it doesn´t mean you can survive all the stress and drama. Look at Whitney Houston or Amy Winehouse, incredibly talented musicians, but gone at such early age. And then there might be others with less vocal and musical talent but who managed to become the biggest stars in the world.
You can be born with a set of skills, but those skills are not enough. Hard work and dedication
is key to success in any industry!

What does it mean to be brave with FASHION?

I think it`s just not giving a fuck. Be who are you, believe in what you do, be brave as what is the worst thing that could happen?

It must be quite inspiring to see people making your clothes part of their own identity.
The music industry, Hollywood, the streets…Tell me more! It is always nice to see people wear your clothes. I spent most of the days in fittings, so there is a story behind every garment, and of course there is an emotional connection to many of those pieces.
Also, we don´t do any endorsements, we never give or send anything to anyone, as we are a young family run company, and it`s just not sustainable. So, if you see someone from music industry, Hollywood, the streets wear VETEMENTS, it means they spent their own money on it, supporting this way the brand and what we do. Therefore, it`s always very pleasant.

Are you curious to hear how others observe what you create? The reasons these observations might interest you? Do you think fashion critique still matters to designers?

The world has become a very toxic place, everyone has an opinion, and everyone has the right to have one. There are people whose opinion I cherish. Albert Elbaz was a very good friend of mine, and I would always listen to his advice. If there are journalists with integrity I`m always open to conversation, someone like Vanessa Friedmann, for example, I truly respect for her work.

There are other people though whose integrity is questionable when they require financial stimulation to right goods reviews, those people I`m not very interested in, however I understand that it`s their only way of survival. Fun part about it all is, that a cycle is a season, that is only 6 months, so you have every 6 months a chance to reinvent yourself.

Is commercialism always an ingredient in what you create? What has been sacrificed in your work process to achieve what is commercially expected?

There needs to be balance in everything you do. Sometimes the creativity can take you far, and you can make the most incredible piece that would be just unaffordable. I did some extremely complicated leather jackets this season, but there are so expensive to produce, that I doubt there are many people out there who can afford them. Therefore, often you need to find a compromise between your design ambitions and commercialism.

What is the most challenging aspect of VETEMENTS or perhaps the biggest risk the brand faces?

The general economy is the problem that the whole industry currently needs to face. A lot of important multibrand retailers are going out of business and that`s the reality. It´s a matter of time. Once there is hurricane outside, you need to find a safe shelter for yourself and your loved ones until it`s over.

Speaking of risks, what is the biggest risk you take when designing a collection? What does freedom mean to you as a designer? Are you ever in conflict with your taste?

Honestly, as we are not a part of any conglomerate, we are free to do whatever we want. If I design something at the very beginning of a season, after 5-6 months I just get fed up with those items and want to replace them before showing them. I`m usually confident with my design decisions, and my taste is very clear, so it`s all fine.

Allow me to ask, what is your biggest struggle as Guram, the person and why? How constant is it in your life?

I think I`m at a point in my life where I can truly appreciate what I have today. I went through a very complicated childhood, going through the war, growing up as a refugee. I went through a drug abuse, I saw a lot of bad things happened, was surrounded by very bad people, so the life I have now it`s like a dream. I love my work, and people in my live, I have a roof over my head and food on my table, eyes that can see, ears that can hear, legs that can walk…. I`m extremely happy in private life. So what else can one want?

What is your most ambitious project still to accomplish and what is perhaps the most important quality a fashion designer can have?

There are a lot of exciting projects I`m working on at the moment, but I´m a bit superstitious, so let`s cross that bridge when we come to it. I think for a designer or anyone else, the most important quality is to be true to who you are, have a goal, be hard working and dedicated to whatever you do in life. Whoever has ears, let them hear. Whoever has eyes, let them see.