Mihca Cho, créateur Haute Couture
Après tout, c'est McQueen qui a déclaré: "Vous connaissez les règles pour les briser. C'est pour ça que je suis là, pour démolir les règles mais pour garder la tradition".
Parlez-nous de votre collection capsule The Black Iris et de votre première collection Haute Couture The Leucite's Copse.
The Leucite's Copse est ma première collection de Haute Couture complète basée sur le concept du refuge, des souvenirs et du désir du passé.
How did it begin? Haute couture has always held a special place in my heart. Although strict in its traditional requirements, it has actually afforded me greater creative freedom than other sectors of the fashion industry. During my time at Parson’s School of Design, I was fortunate enough to travel to London where I received offers of employment from both Vivienne Westwood and Alexander McQueen of which I chose the latter. I subsequently joined a ready to wear company to expand my knowledge of the fashion industry and within a number of years joined an evening wear company before moving on to become the senior designer for the venerated bridal designer Amsale. At Amsale, I designed for 6 different bridal collections each season and worked with private celebrity clientele in creating custom bridal gowns. I gradually developed my own atelier while working full time. After work, I would come home and start creating my own designs. Initially I made couture gowns for friends and family, but as I started to receive more and more referrals, I became increasingly aware of my desire to create my own haute couture collection especially with the increasingly disappointing shift of the fashion industry towards fast fashion. As such, I founded my own Label Mihca Cho in hopes that I might inspire others to gain a deeper appreciation of quality, craftsmanship, and artistry in fashion. Can you tell us about your work technique, and what vision do you want to express in fashion and Haute Couture? My work technique can be compared similarly to those utilized in cinematics where dramatic visuals are deeply tied to emotional narratives. I begin every collection by defining a set of concepts and emotions that I want to convey. I then develop a corresponding story and identify feminine characters who would best portray it. It is only after these steps are complete that I begin to design the haute couture garments for each character utilizing the highest quality fabrics, trims, and embroideries available through my 15 years of experience in the fashion industry. From conception to completion, every gown is designed, patterned, cut, and sewn by my own 2 hands. As such, every gown is made with the utmost care and can take upwards of months to complete.
You collaborated with Alexander McQueen, what did you learn from this experience? Working with Alexander McQueen was a seminal moment in my career. Unlike many designers today, he was a master of his trade given his rare ability to design, pattern, cut, and sew his own garments. I myself, have found this ability enormously important as it allows me to design and properly execute ever more extravagant gowns. With that said, McQueen’s true genius lay in his ability to provoke intense emotions with his dramatic pieces. His work was complex, unique, daring and unapologetic for its indifference to current trends, all qualities I strive to achieve in my own work.
After all, it was McQueen who said that; “You’ve got know the rules to break them. That’s what I’m here for, to demolish the rules but to keep the tradition”. Haute Couture is a very requirement market, what signature do you want to bring? I believe that my signature might best be described as “romantic dualism” as I enjoy comparing and contrasting traditional, natural, mythological, emotional, and dream-like elements. I am also drawn to transitional elements such as the movement between stillness and dance or between light and darkness. Those who appreciate my work embrace the idea of melding art and fashion and are not afraid of being different. I tend to avoid reinterpreting the design aesthetics of existing cultures, referencing pop culture, and following societal trends as I find creating my own unique worlds to be far more intriguing, meaningful, and less restrictive. Tell us about your The Black Iris capsule collection and your first Haute Couture collection The Leucite's Copse. Native to the country of Jordan, the black iris is a seemingly delicate flower that somehow manages to flourish in the harshest of desert sands. As the inspiration for my first capsule collection, the black iris is meant to represent the women who are often depicted by society as delicate flowers and are yet able to survive and even overcome the adversity they must face in their daily lives. Although originally much larger, this collection was purposefully narrowed down to 5 gowns in order to more clearly define the primary feminine characters of my atelier. Over the course of 5 gowns, I wanted to recreate the sequence of a blooming flower starting from the short cocktail gown representing the hard shell of a flower bud to the finale gown representing the fully bloomed petals of the black iris. The Leucite’s Copse is my first full haute couture collection based upon the concept of the haven, memories, and longing for the past. It was created during a period when a close friend of mine was struggling with the loss of her father after losing her mother at a young age. She spent much of that time withdrawn, trying to make peace with her pain, and searching for sanctuary, a concept that ultimately inspired my collection.