STYLE
Rahel Guiragossian is creating an exciting new universe, one in which art and fashion are inexorably combined. The 23-year-old is no stranger to art: she’s the daughter of esteemed contemporary artist Emmanuel Guiragossian, and the granddaughter of the late, great painter Paul Guiragossian. “I grew up surrounded by colors,” she says, “having spent most my life in my father’s atelier.” But the young Lebanese woman is also enthralled with the glamorous world of fashion, holding degrees from both Istituto Marangoni in London and ESMOD Berlin International University of Art for Fashion. In an attempt to bring together her two great loves, Guiragossian decided to create a collection of clothes consisting of five unique pieces made from sequins, each one fashionable and wearable, yet closer in spirit to a valuable painting than to an item of clothing from a designer label. “I was raised with the knowledge that whatever we do, either drawing, painting, creating dresses, sculpturing, anything creative basically, we consider it as art,” she explains. For each of her sequined pieces, Guiragossian used artworks by her family members as inspiration. “I chose to work with the abstract paintings of my grandfather Paul and father Emmanuel,” she says. One of the most important aspects of Guiragossian’s work is that although she selected sequins to create her dresses, she actually invented her own, ecofriendly version of sequins in the process. “I chose sequins, a luxury textile that is completely made out of polyester,” she says. “The innovation was to reinvent the same textile by making it 100% biodegradable.” To achieve her vision, Guiragossian joined forces with Swiss luxury textile manufacturer Jakob Schlaepfer, who sponsored her collection, and German chemical company BASF, which is currently helping her produce a new kind of biodegradable plastic for her sequins.
Under the newly created Rahel Guiragossian label, the young designer launched the aptly named Quand L’Art Inspire L’Art (When Art Inspires Art) collection, which includes an evening dress, overalls, a blazer, a pantsuit and a short dress. The five pieces boldly mix feminine and masculine elements with strong artistic references. The evening dress is particularly dramatic, featuring free draping and powerful artistic strokes inspired by Emmanuel Guiragossian’s painting titled Movement. “The paintings I chose are executed in a fast movement and dynamic strokes, emanating a lot of freedom in the work, while at the same time relaxing the eyes when you look at them,” says Guiragossian. “This concept has been repeated in the entire design aesthetic by draping the sequins on the body and imitating the fast movement as seen in the abstract art.” Of her collection, Guiragossian explains that the aim was always to create art, so she has no plans to release any of her pieces commercially. “The pieces are unique and cannot be replicated 100%,” she says. “I work on demand. If someone likes a certain look, then I will recreate it in a different way, just like a painting.” In recognition of her groundbreaking work, Guiragossian won a mentorship from Gucci. The prestigious Italian label has invited the young woman to its Florence headquarters to further develop the sequins project and to provide needed help and support. This could mark the beginning of a new trend in fashion, one in which each item of clothing is the unique vision of talented young artists – artists like Guiragossian herself.
Rahel Guiragossian design, inspired by “Movement” of Emmanuel Guiragossian
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