Meet Serebrova - Inspired by Emotions and Cultural Heritage

What's your name?

Aliona Serebrova.

Where are you from?

Kiev, Ukraine.

Describe your signature design style in five words.

The brand has always promoted the principles of sustainable fashion, even before these were formulated and became a global trend:
- an innovative approach to materials, processing, design, and the search for new assortment groups,
- high quality,
- environmental friendliness, and
- originality for the every day.

What's your biggest source of inspiration?

Emotion, wherever I feel it: an occasional phrase, a verse, a book, a trip, anything that caused my emotion.

Do you think true innovation in fashion is still possible?

Yes, absolutely. I think that the new stuff will come through an innovative breakthrough in materials. This includes recycling of raw materials that will lead to new forms and types of clothing as well as the introduction of smart clothing gadgets.

What role does the commercial aspect play for you? Does it limit your creativity?

Important, but not defining. It leaves its mark on creativity and is a grounding factor. There is always a desire, like Icarus, to spread the wings and fly away to the sun.

What other art forms inspire your collections?

First of all, it is art - in all its possible manifestations. For example, the collection "Secret of Genius" FW20 / 21, which is presented on the Clothia website and the art project "INWARD" is a collaboration of the SEREBROVA brand with an outstanding artist of Ukraine, a member of the "Golden Guild" International Academy of Contemporary Art in Rome, Ivan Marchuk. According to the international consulting company Creators Synectics (UK). in 2007 Ivan Marchuk was included in the list of the hundred greatest geniuses of our time. The great canvases of the maestro were used for the collection's prints: "The last ray" (1979), "Tell me the truth" (1997), "The sun rose over the Dnieper" (2004), "The Charm of the Archery Night"( 2005), "Quiet Around" (2018), and pictures from the cycle "Gemini Pictures."

Do you prefer to follow or subvert trends?

Fashion is a game. When you create a collection you always play with color, shape, and material. Without any risk, when you do not create something new, then what is is the point of this game?

Do you thrive off of spontaneity or careful planning?

Success is spontaneous - you need to appear in the right place and at the right time, but, nevertheless, the appearance is planned. Planning is in production. Movement is in creation.

How do you deal with creative blocks?

I have not encountered them yet.

Are you a romantic person?

Absolutely.

Do you prioritize aesthetics or functionality?

I prefer aesthetic functionality. A synthesis is better than a choice between the two.

How do you think the fashion industry is going to change as automation takes over?

It will lead to improvements in the working cycles, simplification, and acceleration of the primary processes of creating garments, which will lead to increased profitability. At the same time, an individual approach to the creation of unique looks and handcrafted pieces will be more appreciated.

Which fashion designer do you have the most respect for?

Vivienne Westwood and Gianfranco Ferré.

Are your designs connected with or inspired by your heritage?

Yes. Ukrainian culture has a lot of traditions, like any culture. Each trip and country leave a vivid impression, which inevitably translates into a sketch.

Are art and commercialization irreconcilable?

It is great to make art commercial, i.e. successful and acclaimed for many people. What is successful in a large mass of people is called a "kitsch," but kitsch, i.e. mass culture, has never been an art. An exception is when an author died and became a classic.

What places have the worst-dressed people?

Anywhere if a person did not consider himself a person but one of the crowd.

Did you undergo a formal design education?

Yes. I graduated from the Kiev University of Technology and Design.

Do you think collaborations between companies and designers are cash plays or real attempts at innovation?

Collaboration is always a synergy, and whether it is a positive or negative one is up to the players in the game to decide.

Do you gravitate more toward designing for men or women?

I started out making menswear, but now SEREBROVA is a brand of women's clothing, prêt-à-porter de luxe. I do not exclude the possibility of further development.

What first made you passionate about fashion?

There's no direct way to answer that question. Making clothes is the air that I breathe. It is the water that I drink. It is the sky where I fly.

Once you’ve mastered a certain style, is it difficult to continue evolving it?

It is difficult to create your own style, but to develop it is not that difficult if the style is organic and in tune with you.

If you had to invent a new color, what would it look like and what would you call it?

Something blue-green-purple. I would call it Synevyr - this is a beautiful lake, the pearl of the Carpathians, the place of power and peace.

Do you work better alone or on a team?

Creating models - alone, implementing ideas - on a team.

If you could travel anywhere tomorrow, where would you go?

Machu Picchu (Peru), Galapagos Islands, Easter Island.

What is your favorite film?

The one that I will see in the future.