Alessandra Duò is an experiment, a rebellion and a symbol of Made in Italy. She is the founder and creative director of her brand. The brand represents herself, her most intimate part, her artistic vision and her personality. Graduated from the LABA Academy of Fine Arts in Brescia, Alessandra goes beyond the concept of dress itself and learns to experiment with different materials to create innovative and unusual shapes. She creates works of art as if they were showcased in an art gallery. Alessandra’s inspiration comes from fabrics, without ever losing respect and care for the environment and waste of materials. With courage, Alessandra wants to make her way into the fashion system.
In December 2018 “Alessandra Duó” was born. The brand bears my name as I believe it is the most intimate thing I own, because through it I can express myself and my personality. I would never create a dress that I would not wear.
Hi Alessandra, tell us a little about yourself, your professional path and how you entered the world of fashion
I am Alessandra Duò, I am 26 years old and I come from the province of Rovigo.
My passion for fashion, it will be obvious, was born since I was little, mostly thanks to my mother. It happened very often that she bought tailor-made dresses from a seamstress, and there I realized that a simple piece of fabric could be turned into what you most wanted. Growing up, it became increasingly clear that through clothes I could totally express myself and my personality. My course of study was not the classic path of a stylist, as after middle school I chose to attend an accounting school rather than an art school. However, my passion has always remained alive, and at university I was finally able to study what I was most passionate about. I enrolled in the LABA Academy of Fine Arts of Brescia from where I graduated with the highest distinction.
Attending the academy I learned to go beyond the simple concept of clothing as an end in itself, and to experiment with materials belonging to worlds that are completely different from fashion and that you don’t expect to see in a dress, and to create innovative and sometimes unusual shapes. All these concepts still help me in my creations today. After graduating, I started working as a Stylist and in the various shootings it happened that I also brought some clothes designed by me and made for personal use. These garments often attracted the attention of the people who worked with me asking where they could find them. Since then, I decided to try and launch my own clothing line. In December 2018 “Alessandra Duó” was born, the brand bears my name as I believe it is the most intimate thing I own, because through it I can express myself and my personality. I would never create a dress that I would not wear.
In your opinion, what is the best and the most difficult thing about being a fashion designer today?
The best thing is undoubtedly the possibility to become known through your art and your way of expressing yourself.
Being able to dress people is priceless to me. I still remember the first time I saw a girl wearing a garment from my collection on the street. It was really exciting. This emotion, in my opinion, is the best one in the world.
The most difficult thing is the huge competition, nowadays there are many young designers and it is more difficult to get noticed and stand out.
I strongly believe that you need to find your own style in order to stand out.
Do you have any sources of inspiration in the fashion system?
I find inspiration both from my favorite designers, such as Margiela, Vivienne Westwood and Alessandro Michele, and from a careful search for vintage garments.
Certainly, the creations of great designers, both from the past and the present, fascinate me and inspire me.
But I strongly believe that you need to find your own style in order to stand out.
Our DARE spirit leads us to think, create and act outside our own comfort zone. Your projects are very interesting and manage to capture the attention of the beholder. Tell us about your creative process.
My creative process certainly comes from fabrics, they inspire me and give me the direction to follow for the collections. When I see a beautiful fabric, I can already imagine the garment that I will then realize. The great search for materials is the focal point of the brand, as it is based on the concept of sustainable fashion. In fact, my choice was to use mainly “dead stock”, that is fabrics of the highest quality, however, discarded by large companies, and which should otherwise be thrown away or disposed of. The purpose of not producing new fabrics, and reducing waste, is also to limit further impacts on the environment.
So, my goal is to recycle what would be thrown away, but which can still tell a story. This involves, within the various collections, the creation of unique or limited edition pieces.
Another strong point is undoubtedly the choice of the type of garment packaging, we are talking about the greatest Italian tailoring tradition.
Quality and attention to detail are fundamental to me.
What is the message of your “Fake Nature” project?
The inspiration for this dress comes from the concept of resilience, particularly in nature there are trees and plants that grow in incredible conditions. My interpretation was to create these petals made from balloons cut out one by one, that together create a sort of fake, and therefore immortal, nature.
Looking at your projects like “Tribal Opposite”, “Caught”, “Trought - The Shoes”, it seems that your intention is to challenge materials, shapes and compositions. How does this need arise?
Certainly, my period at the Academy of Fine Arts allowed and encouraged me to experiment as much as possible with materials, and, above all, with my creativity.
My main goal was to have fun and be able to express even the craziest and most courageous ideas.
One of my favorite dresses is “Caught”: it looks like a cage created with hundreds of meters of black elastic that frames, but, at the same time, traps the body that wears it.
The “Rebel Rebel” collection reveals your determination in the fashion system. How would you describe yourself in one word?
Courageous.
After all, I embarked on this adventure alone, relying only on my strength and my savings, without having much experience in the sector, learning day by day.
The “Rebel Rebel” collection is inspired by another brave personality, David Bowie.
My main goal was to have fun and be able to express even the craziest and most courageous ideas.
Fake Nature Shoes” seems to be a unique piece of an art gallery. Do you remember the moment you conceived and then drew it? What did you think?
The creative process that leads me to the creation of each garment is very long and complex, so I remember well all the thoughts that led me up to it.
The same goes for this creation in particular, the idea was to put the “Immortal nature” I mentioned earlier in an exhibition case, just as if it were a work of art exhibited at the museum.
I want to clarify that, despite the particular shape, the shoes can be worn, in fact they were shown on the catwalk during a fashion show.
Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
In 5 years I hope to have grown as an entrepreneur, as well as a stylist, I hope to be able to continue expressing my ideas and my vision.
And I hope to be able to dress more and more women, making them feel confident in themselves and proud of the clothes they wear.
I will certainly continue to pursue my dream, hoping to fully realize it one day.
To know more about Alessandra's work, click here.
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