Fashion: A model for change
if it does not overcome its inhibitions and find the courage to create something unique, according to Eva Minge, one of Poland's best-known fashion designers. WBJ caught up with Minge after the debut of her spring collection, entitled "Spring Awakening".
Konrad Kiedrzyński: What does your new collection communicate to the viewer?
Eva Minge: Imagine a spring or summer dawn in a Polish forest. My woman emerges from the forest into a meadow. Then the sun rises and the mist dissipates and you see a whole palette of beiges, pinks, greens and grays. Now the woman moves out into the street and on to the catwalk.
How would you assess the state of the Polish fashion industry? Does it even exist?
The Polish fashion and textile industries do exist and we are quite good. Still, when it comes to creating genuine new trends, the situation is extremely bad. The majority of patterns that can be found among Polish brands are already existing patterns borrowed from leading designers like Prada, Armani or Dolce Gabana. Therefore, Poland is perceived by the fashion world through the prism of facsimile.
At the same time, our industry has a beautiful past, especially if we consider the achievements of designers like [Jerzy] Antkowiak, Grażyna Hase or Barbara Hoff [Polish designers of the 1960-80s]. They had courage, therefore Polish fashion drew attention, including internationally. People would come to Poland and say "wow."
Nowadays we are Europeans, open to the world, but the problem is that we are driven by existing trends and insist on being part of these. And this is inconvenient for our image. We are good at sewing and in the so-called "labor force" - many companies from the Netherlands and Germany used to order sewing in Poland, which gave our manufacturers solid know-how in sewing techniques. Then, when the foreign firms left, many local companies kept using the existing patterns instead of coming up with their own designs. The result was comparable to a chrysalis, one which never turned into a butterfly.
What can help us then?
Polish designers need to engage in the design process wisely. We need to keep showing how creative we can be.
How do you see yourself within the Polish fashion industry?
My recent haute couture collections were very well received by the French and Italian press, who stressed my originality. I'm trying to be both creative and build up my own brand. This is difficult, but it is achievable. It is possible [for a Pole] to sell in the best fashion houses and live well. I have made a living from fashion for the last 18 years.
I also invest in young, individualistic designers. I send them on trips and help them to win stipends. I keep repeating that young people should believe in themselves and be individual. [I tell them that] this is a difficult path to follow, as there are people eager to throw obstacles in your way. Still, I go against the current and have repeated for years that we have a wonderful fashion industry - what we lack is courage and belief in our own abilities.
