By Tommy Ton, www.jakandjil.com
Internationally recognized as a champion bread winner for some of the world’s most prominent architects, interior designers, actors and even supermodels, Canada has given the world its fair share of iconic luminaries. But where the land of the great white north has failed to succeed to make its mark is in the international world of fashion design. Stereotyped as the land of the lumberjack, Canada has shown little signs of progress in its fledgling fashion industry – with the exception of the Dsquared twins. With the recent addition of newcomers, such as the Beckerman sisters and Jeremy Laing opting to show in New York, our homegrown talents have moved past their roots to achieve greater success outside their native land.
You can always guarantee at least one designer to headline Toronto Fashion Week, but with the departure of critically acclaimed designers such as Arthur Mendonca and Denis Gagnon this season, it leaves a great deal of pressure for the small number of designers showing to take the spotlight and give Canadian fashion a boost of creative energy. The Toronto Fashion Incubator’s New Labels fashion show always promises to be a hot ticket with emerging talents presenting their collections, but this year’s show brings on board a rookie designer who could possibly help Canadian fashion back on its feet.
With two stellar seasons under her belt and Holt Renfrew’s World Design Lab carrying her collection, Desperately Different designer Katya Revenko is a force to be reckoned with this season at the TFI New Labels show. Her unique aesthetic and design sensibility carries a signature that will have the media and industry pouring in the accolades. Marrying proportion and silhouette to suggest various ways of dressing, Revenko’s designs are all about construction and precision of cut, giving the wearer the strength and confidence to exude absolute femininity.
Born and raised in Kiev, Ukraine, Revenko completed her degree in fashion design at the Ukrainian State of Academy of Apparel Industry and upon graduating she freelanced as a costume designer and stylist for several Ukrainian television stations. Accepting a placement with Leo Burnett Worldwide, a Top Ten global agency network, opened new doors for Revenko creating a platform for her to express her ideas in her designs. Immigrating to Canada in 2002 led to Revenko’s ultimate desire to create her own design cooperative, welcoming other designers who shared the same vision to collaborate with her. “I do a broad range of items, but everyone brings something to the table,” says Revenko.
Motivated by all types of strong intelligent women, Revenko’s main objective behind each collection is to create clothes that evoke a certain kind of effortlessness and feeling of relaxed, everyday luxury. “I wanted the whole line to boast an aura of female sexuality, without undermining the strength and intelligence of the wearer,” says Revenko. “I don’t like the way that most women dress in this intentionally messy way. I want to create timeless pieces, not disposable pieces.” Judging by the complex construction of Revenko’s pieces, one would assume that the design process is intense, but it is in fact based on instinct,claims Revenko. “Follow your instinct when something evokes a feeling of beauty. My inspirations range from anything out of the ordinary to the shape and silhouette of vintage pieces.”
For Fall/Winter 2006, Revenko sourced her inspiration for the Desperately Different collection from iconic historical female figures, such as Joan of Arc, Catherine the Great and Marlene Dietrich. “I like to inject a feeling of déjà vu into the clothes that bring back memories or references of different periods and historic figures,” says Revenko. The collection is an exercise in duality, whether it is masculine/feminine, hard/soft or vulgar/subversive. Each piece is well thought out and aptly named to reflect Revenko’s vision of women. For instance, the Joan of Arc jacket provides an armor of sorts for the modern woman who, with her strong exterior, can nurture and protect her soft vulnerable interior. Likewise, the Isadora Duncan dress, a gorgeous swath of pleated lavish purple satin, is anchored by tweed on the torso, but gives the wearer the freedom to move and sway in the satin. Revenko’s usage of sensual and menswear inspired fabrics is counterpoised by the hard severity of military details and gestures of Victorian shapes. “I see beauty in the smallest details and I like mixing elements from different periods, such as fabric, shape, proportion and silhouette.”
A woman designing for her own generation, Revenko understands that women don’t want to add beige clothing to their wardrobes – they want something special and uniquely crafted. Glamour and in-your-face sex appeal don’t interest Revenko and, like Miuccia Prada, her ultimate goal is to inject hints of subversive sexuality and sensuality in a modest fashion. Demonstrating a vision and design philosophy that transcends that of her peers, Revenko’s label is one to watch in the future.
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