Know Demna Gvasalia? He is Georgian and the new rising star in Paris, London, New York, and Shanghai. His street-loving fashion turns down the luxury-addicted designs of Gucci and Valentino as he embarks on a fashion revolution. And though he is the best-known Tbilisi designer of late, he is by far not the only one, as the Georgian capital is the birthplace of hundreds of first-class designers who work tirelessly to create a delicious conglomeration of Soviet-style hardship and Western embellishment.
Since 2009, the Merceded Benz Fashion Week has been held here twice a year to start the summer season and winter season. This is the hotspot for Tbilisi fashion. In May, the week features the trendiest pieces for the upcoming summer, giving the garment industry a taste of what to sell. Designers come from around the globed, but the rising Tbilisi fashion scene easily offers enough top-notch talents to fill up the program with Georgian names. Besides national stars such as Datuna and Anouki, other established designers such as Janashia showcase their latest creations.
Running from morning to evening, Tbilisi Circus is the main event location. Yet the best creators chose their own spots to give their works the right background. Among some of
the selected locations is Fabrika Tbilisi, forging a hipster environment with expensive upper-class garments. Another noticeable place is King David Residence, which will be
transformed from an apartment-hotel complex into a fashion hotspot. The ideas are endless, as symbolized in the wide range of location picks, even including Rooms Hotel, the
Georgian State University, and the National Opera.
As usual, the evenings are to be reserved for drinks and music, with Bassiani providing the desired renegade ambiance, disrupting society through techno tunes.
Friday evening’s main designer is Anouki, a Georgian Instagram model married to former Milan football star and current Tbilisi Mayor, Kakha Kaladze. She is inviting guests to
admire her works at the Writer’s House, hoping to fuse fashion with literature. Janashia, one of Georgia’s fashion pioneers and the creator of FLABOUR concept stores in Batumi
and Tbilisi, will excite the press and fashion critics alike, as her fashion draws a fine line between luxurious and urban, hip lifestyles.
See the full program at: www.mbfashionweektbilisi.com
May 3 – May 7
By Benjamin Music