The fifth finalist in the Audi Star Creation fashion contest is Kim Yong-Woo,
whose collection takes inspiration from the concept of space and
three-dimensional imagery. It's actually one of my personal favourite collections of this competition! Read on to see what he has to say about the
competition and his designs.
Name of designer: Kim Yong Woo (South
Korea)
Age: 27
Name of Collection: The Existence of Space
- What made you participate in the Audi Star Creation? How did you
hear about it?
I came across the competition while I was surfing the web with a
friend during the Christmas season in 2011. The moment I saw it, I knew I had
to take part. I was attracted by the lucrative prize money and opportunity to
do an internship with FJ Benjamin in Singapore, if I win.
- What was the inspiration behind your collection?
My collection, The Existence of Space, draws on triangles and three-dimensional
imagery to represent the concept of space. The concept of existence in
my collection is philosophical. I also wanted to bring out the fact that we
take existence of everything for granted that we don’t notice that it is
actually there.
- What new ideas/approach do you think you bring
to the fashion scene in the region?
I want to make clothes that are full of
philosophy. If I can insert just a little
of my philosophy and sense of beauty into every stitch I make, that would be
great. I did not become a designer simply because I wanted to design clothing,
but because I want to make clothes with concepts, and hope to continue to do
so.
- Any Asian designers/labels that you like and look up to?
I really like designer Kim Jae Hyun from
Jardin de Chouette. Kim Jae Hyun has received much recognition from public figures
and has a huge fan base among celebrities in Korea. I got a chance to see her
in person last year when I managed to qualify for the finals in an Art Wear
event organised by Vogue Korea and felt that her personal style is very cool as
well. Jardin de Chouette is definitely a
one-of-a-kind show to look out for every season.
- What would you like to do if you win and who would be your target
audience (people in the region, age group, style, etc...)?
If I win, I
would like to use the cash prize to prepare my winning collection to be
available for retail. I will also make use of the internship with FJ Benjamin
to learn as much about the fashion industry as possible.
Women
who are sure of what they want and are familiar with designer labels would be
able to appreciate my collection best. I know that consumers are always looking
for something new and different, and they can find that in my collection which
is distinctive in style with a dash of history behind it.
