The Contour of Luxury Spring/Summer 2018 | Page 52

Alexis Day With an educational background in Anthropology, and Archeology, in what ways do your formal studies in these fields play into your current design expression? Kyriako Caras When we look at Archaeology, we are really trying to understand human culture through their material remains. As anthropologists, you try to examine human culture by truly getting a grasp on the un-assumed characteristics within that culture. You have to do so with an open mind, and un-objectively. You have to connect with the human condition, in context, and unobscured by the limits of today’s influences. What I discovered in my studies is that art and beauty is a universal expression that we have seen throughout history, cross-culturally, and has played a major role in evoking one’s inner most thoughts. This is exactly what I do when I design, it is meant to evoke a human emotion, and to express one’s own most individualistic notions. It is an experience of the human condition. As a designer, this is key to me and my focus is to inspire and celebrate beauty across the board. Fashion should never discriminate or personify beauty, it simply can’t because it is art. As an artist, it is contradictory to create and design objectively. This is a major contribution that my studies have provided to me in fashion. Alexis Day If fashion is a statement of inner beauty, what do you find to be most enjoyable to express through fabric, color or movement? Kyriako Caras Fashion can mean many things to many different people. For me, it is an extension of one’s own personality. As a designer, the most important thing to me is to create a balance between texture, color, and fabric, in a way that really draws out the most intimate emotions to whoever is wearing it. If somebody feels confident and beautiful in the piece they are wearing, it will only be enhanced by their character. It is a playful interplay between our emotions and what we have on. When there is a connection, you can sense it, and it is intoxicating.