One on One: Interview with designer Laura Siegel

Up in the garment district on a Tuesday afternoon in March, Laura Siegel sits behind a desk adorned with Bolivian bells, statuettes and mementos-- they look ancient.  Around the desk, framing the room on racks, lies an extensive collection of clothing, perfectly draped on hangers. Though the office seems dark from a gloomy day, the room somehow seems brighter as Laura contently sits with a warm smile on her face.

At only 24, the collection is proudly hers-- and though it is only two seasons old, Laura is regarded by respectable sources and foundations to be on the radar as a young emerging talent. I spend the next hour with Laura, talking about the garments and her background.

Laura's mission goes above and beyond the idea of a designer choosing and interpreting a theme for each season.  As she talks, I quickly learn the adornments in the room to be inspiration and mementos from her travels around the world, particularly Bolivia and India. As she continues on even more, it becomes evident that Laura's endeavor and passion is ultimately an effort to give back to these countries; through outsourcing her fabrication to the artisans there, thus through doing so, also educating her audience on these cultures and crafts. In the big picture, though she chooses a theme for each season to explore, her line is very much about sustainability of foreign crafts which have the potential to eventually die.

Thus, foreign travel and culture go hand and hand with Laura's collection. Working with non-for-profits, Laura journeys to Bolivia and India with a guide,  her seasonal theme in mind, from village to village, waiting, looking, and discovering crafts and local artsians who will help bring her sketches (which sometimes have no fabric or color scheme) to life. Each village holds strength in a different craft, and I soon learn about Ajrakh Block-printing (an Indian technique of dying silk which has been a family trade for ten generations), Dhebaria Rabari (embroidery technique from the Kutch region of India), and Bolivian knitting techniques (all of her knits are made in Bolivia).  As I sift through the collection, each garment unique and beautiful in its own right, Laura chimes in with a story. The line, she explains, is inspired by dreams and caves, so each piece has a particular association in mind.

Ultimately, each garment becomes a manifestation of Laura's vision and these ancient crafts.

My favorite piece:

a few looks from spring 2012:

Laura's passion for the mission of her line, for her travels, and for the cultures she discovers, is undeniable, and her extensive knowledge and determination to share it with others is admirable. It is clear that as she travels and discovers and meets more artisans, her line will only get better and more beautiful. 

Laura's collection is currently sold at Curve boutique and End of a Century in New York City.

I am djing her trunk show tomrorow night from 6-9pm-- please stop by to see the collection and pre-order it for fall!

Here is a transcription of our interview below!

MF
How and where did you start designing clothing? Is it something you have always wanted to do?

LAURA
I always enjoyed designing clothes, but when I was younger felt a huge challenge in pursuing it as a career since I didn't know how to draw initially. It was when I was applying to Uni that my Dad inspired me to face the challenge and take drawing lessons so I could put together a portfolio for Parsons.

MF
When you were little, what did you want to be when you grew up?

LAURA
I wanted to go into fashion, but always thought that I would be dealing more with the business end of things-since I really liked interacting with people and saw marketing as a way of being able to do that.  I applied to all the major business programs in Canadian universities and took the acceptance to Parsons as a sign of fate.  And I followed that path.

MF
Can you talk a little about your design process?

LAURA
I would say it's very organic.  Sometimes i start by sketching, draping, painting, researching or sewing, and a lot of the time the process evolves tremendously when I start working with the different groups of artisans.  It is that part of the design process, working with talent from other cultures and collaborating, the way human interaction influences the process in such a positive way, that excites me the most.

MF
Where do you pull inspiration from?

LAURA
Like I mentioned, the people I work with, new people I meet, other cultures- I spend a lot of time travelling and am always learning about new crafts and communities.  Also- the earth's natural landscape is something I try to emulate- every collection I have a different setting of the world in mind.

MF
What do you hope to achieve with your collections?

LAURA
Ultimately, I hope to connect the consumer to the people and the hand that makes a garment, see their life story and educate the consumer on the crafts and cultures that are out there. Also, a huge part of that education process would lead to heightened awareness and a stronger desire in the world to help maintain these crafts, preventing extinction which has happened to many types of artisan crafts.   Something I admire so much when I travel to Asia and South America, is the older worlds.  The ability to maintain the same away of life that people lived hundreds of years ago- the abundance of farm land and importance of farming to a lot of these cultures, women still wearing the same traditional dress that their ancestors wore, holding on to their ancestors values and with that, practicing their craft.  It is this entire way of living that I want to be maintained.. so it is no longer the case that craftspeople ever have to consider leaving their way of life to do construction work in a bigger town.  That is what I am achieving on one end- on the other end I want to give people timeless clothes that they can feel free and relaxed in. When I'm traveling, it's important that the clothes that I wear don't restrict me- and reflect my personality when I'm at my most calm, open, and adventurous state. This nostalgia is what I want to bring to my clothing.  My clothes provide option to the wearer that really evolve from person to person. I always look at designing clothes as creating a home for the body.



MF
Your fall 2012 collection is inspired by dreams, and you mentioned that this led you to think about rocks and caves. Why is this?

LAURA
It was about mourning the loss of a dream and coming to a realization in that process that there are other dreams- maybe dreams you used to have that have been in hibernation, or that need to be resurrected.  So it comes from the concept of a dream that has physically been living in a cave or underground, in the dirt, that has come out of hiding to be fulfilled.

MF
Can you tell us a dream you used and how it is interpreted in one of your pieces in the collection?

LAURA
One small aspect- the lost dream involves a particular sweatshirt, which was something that I wore every day (almost like it was my jacket) during a specific time period- and often ended up tying it around my waist, or other ways around the body (and not wearing it as an actual sweatshirt.  I used the same pattern from the sleeves of that sweatshirt and used it as a closure for a few of the pieces.

MF
You outsource the fabrication of your garments to artisans in India and Bolivia. Who has been the most interesting person you have come across in your travels and why?

LAURA
Honestly, it would be too difficult to say one person is more interesting than the others- but they are all interesting in different ways.  So one group- the embroidery group that I work with are fascinating because of their way of living. They have been able to sustain their culture and ways of life for centuries. Their values have been maintained, so working with them is like learning about the world the way it was in a different time.  Asides from that, their morals are incredibly strong.  They have been practicing their craft for generations and still practice it, thanks to Qasab, an organization that helped them revive the craft 2 years ago. (It was banned 15 years ago because it was part of the dowry system that the elderly women wanted to eliminate). Today, you walk in their region and you know which woman is from which community based on the type of embroidery they are wearing, embroidery encompasses their life from social status, to hobby, to a means of interacting with other members of the community socially.


MF
How do your designs change during this process where you find these artists to achieve what you envision?

LAURA
I start with a vision, but know that as a designer, the process can evolve in many ways. All the fun in designing lies in the unexpected.  It's those experiences while working that make the entire vision come to a new realization.  These artisans play a massive role in the evolution of each collection and in the end we always achieve a vision we all love.


MF
How do you feel your line has changed and evolved thus far?

LAURA
It's very young, working on out 3rd season right now.  So far, it has evolved by us really making more use of each crafts we work with and a stronger focus on quality.

MF
Where are you from? How has this shaped the way you design and think about design?

LAURA
I'm Canadian- grew up there, but I think it's my travels that have really influenced the way I think about design. I love the way so many of the places I've spent time in, solve problems and go about life in a way that is completely different from the way I was used to growing up.  It's a lot more organic, and very easy going, and involves making use of what you have right in front of you. Rather than having tools, and making use of new technology, its a more natural and instinctive way of doing things.

MF
How have you promoted the line?

LAURA
Presentations up in Canada- Toronto Fashion Week, a small pop-up at the Ace this year during Fashion Week.

MF
What advice would you give to young designers?

LAURA
Keep dreaming, keep creating, and continue to challenge yourself.

MF
How do you envision the future of the collection?

LAURA
This really is a lifestyle brand, so I can't wait for the day I get to start collaborating on furniture and home products.  I am really looking forward to the point where I can be bringing in other artists from around the world and matching them with artisans in developing countries to continue building a community of collaborations.

MF
Artists or designers that inspire you?

LAURA
James Castle, Donna Karan, John Hardy, Megan Park

MF
Favorite spots?

LAURA
The river in Vang Vieng, Laos…Soul Mama's-awesome veggie food in Melbourne...Vij's- Indian food in Vancouver...Angkor Waht…my parent's home...Quattro de Leoni's-Florence…the water and beaches in Bali

MF
Favorite city to travel?

LAURA
La Paz, Boliva

MF
Favorite New York City spots?

LAURA
Rooftops, El Almacen, Roberta's, Walter's, Museum of Natural History

MF
Three songs you couldn't live without?

LAURA
Let's make that 4 artists- All Marleys, Lykke Li, Arctic Monkeys, Local Natives

MF
Favorite object?

LAURA
My passport...

helplessness: time stands still

I had the chance to see Time Stands Still with my mother about two months ago.

Made me a think a lot about a lot of what is currently going on in the world, and how people of different generations respond to it in different ways.

After seeing footage of Japan on the news, all I could think about was this play. My friends told me how many videos and photos were being shared on twitter and facebook (I am not on either anymore), and how many were saying about how sorry they felt.

Photography and videos taken during times of distress, war, and destruction: does it ever reach a point where it is too much?

While it can promote people who view them to make a difference, how many who share these images and videos really take the step to contribute, donate, or help? By sharing these images on a social network with such extreme, is a line crossed?  Does it become exploitive?  Invasive?

*


SARAH
They'd lost children in that mess, and there I was like a ghoul with a camera shooting away.
I live off the suffering of strangers. I've built a career on the sorrows of people I don't know and I will  never see again...

JAMES
That's not true. You've helped them in ways you can't see

SARAH
Have I? Have I really?



*

I know it crosses my mind, and it must cross the minds of other people-

 How on earth can I even begin to help? Where do I start?

You can donate money to the right places, of course.  I do this almost always. And if you haven't donated to Japan Red Cross already, you should give any amount, large or small-- because every little bit helps. So if the images drive people to actually donate, then for that I am thankful.

But at the end of the day, the thought of these situations-- seeing these images and videos-- makes my stomach drop.  It's this feeling-- normally an empty feeling-- but in situations like this, feels full.

It's a certain kind of helplessness.

Because I see the images, the videos, then donate-- but I can't really DO anything.

I can't physically act, I can't physically help. And I don't know where to start, because I feel so removed.


*

MANDY

You could have been helping them.

SARAH

I was helping them. I was taking their picture.

MANDY

How is THAT helping them?

SARAH

By gathering evidence to sh--

If it weren't like people like me, the ones with the cameras, who would know? Who would care?

*

To physically help, one needs the skills, the training, the knowledge. I've researched this for years-- that there is nothing I can do to physically help in situations like this.

 Those who are trained to help, are there physically helping. All I can do--anyone can do-- is have faith in them, and be thankful that they have these skills and abilities.

But it's the images, the videos during times like this-- after a certain point, what does their function become?

*

Time Stands Still, which is written by playwright Donald Margulies, was just nominated by a Tony Award. Laura Linney plays Sarah, a photojournalist, who has spent most of her time photographing the war.

The best scenes which highlight how this is discussed are below:

http://video.nytimes.com/video/2010/10/06/arts/1248069142012/time-stands-still.html

Start at 

5:39

I only hope that the sharing of images and videos during times of distress on social networks truly do drive people to act and make a difference.

How to Donate:

How to send a wire transfer to Red Cross Japan
American Red Cross (Direct Link to Donation)
Save the Children Federation

Text REDCROSS to 90999 to donate $10 to Red Cross which will help those affected by the earthquake.



How to Help:
Doctors Without Borders

baby birds and NY Cares

I apologize in advance for anyone who may think that this is animal un-friendly...

But I went back to Long Island before I begin work again on Monday,

and my dad pointed out that there were birds who made a nest in one of his orchid pots in the greenhouse.

He's been watching them for months.

Nosy me tried to capture them, as they literally just hatched today. This is dedicated to Terrill, who made me scream like

this many a times in backstock.

Also, I just took the time to sign up for my orientation for New York Cares-- which is an organization which has an online database of community service projects going on in the New York City area. You search by your skills and availability, and the site gives you a list of projects that match that criteria.

It's really great if you have a busy schedule and can't commit to something on a weekly basis. I can't wait to start. If you live in the area, please sign up!