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\n\u201cI just love beautiful things,” remarks Dumitrascu, explaining the philosophy behind her beautifully eclectic, artfully crafted collections . \u201cFashion can be intellectual and ethical but in the end it simply has to be fun.”
\nFashion fans might know Andra Dumitrascu as a shop curator \u2013 her boutique Salbazaar in Berlin\u2019s Mulackstrasse has been showcasing a wide-ranging selection of modern designers for more than a decade. The unlikely blend of Dolce & Gabbana shoes, Comme des Gar\u00e7ons sweaters and Christophe Lemaire shirts that one finds there, is an evidence of Dumitrascu\u2019s open-minded, receptive attitude, to which she also stays true in her work as a designer.
\nEven though her eponymous line was launched but a few months back, Andra Dumitrascu did, in fact, receive formal design training \u2013 she studied at Vienna\u2019s University of Applied Arts back in the days when Raf Simons was a teacher there. In fact, Raf was one of the reasons she applied there, whereas his departure was the main reason she decided to \u00a0quit. \u201cAt the time they used to have incredibly talented people teaching at the University \u2013 Raf Simons, Jil Sander… Zaha Hadid at the Institute of Architecture,” recalls Dumitrascu. What she appreciated most about studying in Vienna is the creative freedom each student was given there. Notoriously selective in enrolling students, the university allows them to do whatever they want \u201cwithout having to fulfil somebody else\u2019s expectations.”
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\nFreedom of judgement and freedom of choice seem to be the two key values for Andra Dumitrascu no matter what she embarks upon. It is the lure of freedom, after all, that motivated her to move to Berlin and curate a shop: \u201cIt allowed me to travel the world, collecting what I thought was interesting, getting to know all those cultural, intellectual meanings behind the clothes.” What Dumitrascu protests against, on the other hand, is the constricting grip of definitions, as she refuses to pinpoint her inspirations: \u201cI believe there is value to everything. Even the dullest ideas can give birth to something incredible.\u201d Thus, however different it might be from her own design principles, she does not rush to condemn the wasteful ways of fast fashion: \u201cI understand that the problem is complex and I try to avoid doing harm. But one has to be aware that it all goes back to social problems. Those [mass-produced] clothes are of personal value to lots of people, making them feel better, happier. One has to be respectful of that and aware that the social structure needs to be changed as well. Give people more self-esteem and integrity, and they will stop buying insane amounts of crap.”
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\nAs we turn to the subject of designing, Dumitrascu comes up with a brilliant metaphor. \u201cFiltering. That\u2019s what you do as a shop curator and that\u2019s what you do as a designer \u2013 you filter and execute\u201d. Instead of investing in clothes with a message \u2013 which does pose a certain limitation \u2013 Dumitrascu devotes a lot of thinking to the value of clothes as products \u2013 \u201cWould they matter to somebody? Broaden their horizon? Make them look more confident or sexier?\u201d Dumitrascu\u2019s view on creating fashion seems to be too multi-faceted to be explained with one single concept. In quite a de Saussurean way she compares fashion to a language, shared by many, but employed individually, differently by each person. In her work, it seems, she is focused on putting together a fashion lexicon to be used for multiple occasions.
\nBut it is not, of course, to say that Andra Dumitrascu doesn\u2019t have a style \u2013 her distinctive clothes brim with character, just the way she does. Minimalist in cuts, they come with subdued theatricality, unexpectedly eccentric details that make them endearing and eventually make you understand Andra Dumitrascu\u2019s design philosophy \u2013 you don\u2019t have to analyse clothes, you just have to be responsive to their effects.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"