March 1, 2019 |
As the 2019 LVMH Prize semifinals take place in Paris tonight, we bring you an excerpt from Issue 49 of Ten Men starring one of the contenders Kiko Kostadinov. He is part of Ted Stansfield’s talent portfolio of New Royals – emerging fashion designers changing the face of menswear:
On London’s emerging-designer circuit, Kiko Kostadinov is in a league of his own. A pattern cutter beyond his years, the Central Saint Martins MA fashion graduate has rapidly made a name for himself, thanks to his inspired and innovative shapes, Comme-like approach and sheer style of his creative output. Meet him in real life and you’ll see this style personified. Having designed two sell-out collections for Stüssy (before even graduating), the Bulgarian-born designer has more recently teamed up with Asics and Camper, and designs an uber-cool line for Mackintosh, now in its fourth iteration, Mackintosh 0004.
“My approach is very personal,” he says, “but I’m always thinking of a seasonal proposal and new shapes that can contribute to menswear all together.” Last season at London Fashion Week Men’s, Kostadinov delivered a typically cerebral collection that riffed on an art installation by Martin Kippenberger called The Happy End of Franz Kafka’s Amerika. “I always feel that menswear is considered less complicated than womenswear,” he says. “But I think that menswear collections should be as emotional and considered as some of the best womenswear collections.” The cult of Kiko has only just begun.
Latest purchase: “Johnnie Walker Game of Thrones limited-edition whisky for my dad.”
Most precious item of clothing: “Probably some archive Yohji.”
“Popping to the corner shop” look: “Every look is a ‘popping to the corner shop’ look. I pretty much live at the studio, so I tend to just wear comfortable pants, a big hoodie and a pair of our Asics.”
Portrait by Paride Calvia. Feature taken from Issue 49 of Ten Men. NEW ROYALS, RESET, DEMOCRACY – Issue 49 of Ten Men is out NOW.
