Portrait: Mitja Bokun
Meta Megušar Bizjan, the award curator:
Izet Curi – a superstar couturier, a costume designer and a lecturer with a 37-year career at the Masters Studies Akademie Francais – has established, after his brilliant career in Paris, two schools in Kosovo and Skopje: “Design Factory” and “The International Fashion Institute Izet Curi”. He would like to change the conditions in fashion industry of this Balkan region. He thinks it is a shame that the countries with such high-potential talent are not able to detect this great talent capacity. In Southeast Europe there is industry, but no fashion. Fashion influence, namely, always stems from the most powerful countries such as France, Italy or England. As a professor I want to convey my knowledge and experience to young students and to fashion enthusiasts. Mr Izet has gained his invaluable knowledge and experience while working with the best fashion designers such as: Hermes International, Thierry Mugler, Azzedine Alaia, Jean Paul Gaultier, Christian Lacroix, Chloe and Chanel. These are just a few names that have marked his career path. His exquisite fashion creations are greatly admired by superstars like Isabelle Adjani, Christopher Lambert, Gerrard Depardieu, Sean Connery, Monica Belluci, Emir Kusturica, Cindy Crawford, Naomi Campbel … and ”Patrulle de France” – French military pilots whose uniforms he was creating for a full 12 years.
“I came to Paris with a small bag of knowledge and I returned with a big suitcase of ideas and abundant knowledge that I would like to share with new talents.”
As a professor I want to convey my knowledge and experience to young students and to fashion enthusiasts. Mr Izet has gained his invaluable knowledge and experience while working with the best fashion designers such as: Hermes International, Thierry Mugler, Azzedine Alaia, Jean Paul Gaultier, Christian Lacroix, Chloe and Chanel. These are just a few names that have marked his career path. His exquisite fashion creations are greatly admired by superstars like Isabelle Adjani, Christopher Lambert, Gerrard Depardieu, Sean Connery, Monica Belluci, Emir Kusturica, Cindy Crawford, Naomi Campbel … and ”Patrulle de France” – French military pilots whose uniforms he was creating for a full 12 years.
“I came to Paris with a small bag of knowledge and I returned with a big suitcase of ideas and abundant knowledge that I would like to share with new talents.”
An interview with Izet Curi: “Never feel inferior on acount of your origins”
By Meta Megušar Bizjan
Izet Curi is a man who invented himself. He is a self-made-man, a smart man who started from scratch while living in former Yugoslavia and he succeed in glamorous Paris where he worked along with some top names of the fashion world. After his magnificent career in fashion, he could have retired, but he decided to pass on his wide knowledge and experience to young students and to fashion enthusiasts of his home country.
With career like yours, you could rest on your laurels and just enjoy the fruits of your past work. How did you come up with the idea of opening your two schools, The International Fashion Institute Izet Curi and Design Factory? Why teaching? What does it mean to you?
As a teenager, I had a desire to share with others what I learned, either from my sisters in the early childhood or later in contact with others. Even in Paris, there were always many young people in my studio and I was happy to share my knowledge with them. Later, when I was a professor lecturing at some of the biggest fashion faculties in Paris, I got the idea of establishing a school where young people from my own country would be given an opportunity to learn about the latest fashion trends and techniques. Besides, I also wanted to share with them the professional experience I gained in Paris. A true master always strives to train and teach young people the secrets of a profession.
In your opinion, what is the most important quality one needs to possess to succeed in fashion business, especially if you are a young fashion designer from Southeast Europe?
The first question I usually ask my students is whether this will be their profession and why they opted for it. I also ask them why they are special and why someone might choose them as fashion designers. Being a designer is the biggest responsibility in fashion industry because it necessitates great commitments. If we want to succeed, we should never feel inferior on account of our origins, especially nowadays with all the information access we have at our disposal due to great advancements in technology. In order to succeed, a lot of hard work, dedication, talent, patience and perseverance is required.
You are very caring about your students and you treat them as if they were your own family, taking them to Paris each year and showing them every little detail that could help them in their future fashion careers. This year is much different since our culture went virtual. What changes did you have to make in your teaching approach?
The International Fashion Institute Izet Curi also had to adapt to the extraordinary circumstances caused by COVID-19. Following the declaration of the state of emergency and the closure in March, we had to make some changes to the curriculum to adapt it to online classes which continued until the end of the school year in June. We were focused on developing collections, analyzing changes in fashion industry and upgrading our knowledge about textiles All our lectures were held online and they were attended by students who were able to participate in our virtual courses from their homes. All professors teaching at the Institute were willing to assist the students whenever they needed our help. In the new school year, however, teaching at the Institute continues, with students and professors being physically present and following strict protective measures. Unfortunately, the number of students has been reduced.
What will fashion be like in the future? Do you think we will buy less and purchase more quality things? Will people become more practical because of the current crisis or will they want more glamour in their lives? Which of the two options do you prefer?
In my opinion, the world will never be the same again after the COVID -19 pandemic. The economic crisis caused by COVID -19 will leave its mark on the fashion industry, which will be followed by some major changes leading to sustainable fashion. The fashion industry will offer more practical and, hopefully, high quality clothing. My biggest wish is for Haute Couture to have continuity, because it has a very high value and besides, I think that handmade high-quality clothes should never disappear.
When you were young, did you imagine you would be so successful in fashion? How did you find courage to leave your hometown and move to Paris? What inspired you to do that? What do you think are the biggest achievements in your career? What are you most proud of and why? What area of your work did you like most (designing, meeting celebrities, teaching)?
Every young person hopes he / she will probably be successful one day, but I never thought I would be so successful. I started my profession because it gave me the opportunity to lead a different life. I never thought I would change my place of residence since I had a very good life in Skopje. The first place that probably comes to the mind of a young person who has ambitions in fashion is certainly Paris. When I first visited Paris, I was really impressed by the city. The place itself was beyond my imagination. After a few months of living in Paris, I decided to stay there, even though it wasn’t that easy at all. I decided it was the place where I wanted to live. I am really proud of the fact that I managed to accomplish the designs created from my imagination, even though it was sometimes almost impossible to complete the tasks. What I liked most about the work itself was a design process within a team and the precise couture handwork.
Once you said: “If nobody needs you, if nobody loves you, what should you live for”. It’s very obvious that your students love you, need you and deeply respect you. You are very young at heart, always trying to bring something new to your society. Is there something new that inspires you now?
I have always been inspired by everyday life, the nature of women, by what I have seen and what I have heard. What inspires me most at the moment are my students who I share my professional experience with.
The International Fashion Institute Izet Curi, photo: archive Izet Curi.
Patrouille de France pilots, creation by Izet Curi, photo: archive Izet Curi.
Izet Curi with Christopher Lambert, photo: archive Izet Curi
Creation by Izet Curi, photo: archive Izet Curi.
The following dresses are the work of prof. Izet Curi’s brilliant students.