MARY KATRANTZOU
WEARABLE ART

As a little girl, she dreamed of becoming like the renowned architect Zaha Hadid. She eventually depicted geometry in fashion and via her original prints, she managed to establish her presence on the international fashion scene. Mary Katrantzou is not merely an internationally renowned designer who dresses celebrities such as Sarah Jessica Parker, Nicole Kidman and Michelle Obama. When Melania Trump appeared wearing her creation, she became a topic of discussion all over the fashion world.

 

Interview with Maria Lemonia
I met Mary in Mykonos, where she was truly enjoying her brief stay. She had already uploaded photos on her Instagram, showing her excitement about the golden suite – with a swimming pool- in which she resided, followed by comments of adoration for the hospitality she was receiving. She was undoubtedly sweet, low-key, shy and friendly.

 

The colors and temperament of her face reflected a Mediterranean sweetness, and her expressions radiated the teenage enthusiasm of “wanting to conquer the whole world”, even though she was already established as an international fashion leader. We drink coffee – without sugar because we are both careful about our diets! – and I initially commented that she does not give frequent interviews.

 

“I am generally shy. Though, I was even shyer when I was younger” she explained. “Besides, my team and I are almost constantly on a plane travelling. 24 hours per day do not seem enough for us. Even when I am at our headquarters in London, our time schedule is suffocating”.

I ask her about her daily routine. She takes a big breath and lets me know that: “It is real madness! Top competition demands sacrifices. As the company grows, the initial ambition changes, and with this comes an increase to what is demanded. When I first started, I did not have any social life at all. Fortunately, or perhaps even unfortunately, my husband is a doctor, and his job is also very stressful, so we both had to move away from socializing and focus on our jobs. This, of course also had to do with the fact that we are living in London, away from our close friends who live mostly in Greece. When I started my company up, I had to go to events, a professional obligation I used to find really exhausting. Today, I am able to face the social side of my work in a more relaxed manner. I have found my balance! Competition, however, requires both fatigue as well as sacrifice. At the same time, it is very easy to fall victim to flatterers telling you what you wish to hear and end up losing your measure of things…”.

Her style with unusual prints that may depict bottles or geometric shapes, often drawing inspiration from Greek mythology to Disney, was established on the world scene relatively quickly. The international community seems to have bowed to her talent. After all, she was nurtured in the world of design. Born in Greece, she has been involved in design since she was very young. Her grandmother designed lighting fixtures, her mother was involved in decoration and her father, although a businessman dealing with security systems, due to family tradition has complete knowledge of fabrics. As for her grandfather Nikos, he was the founder of the well-known “Katrantzos” big store, which launched the first sports sneakers in the Greek market.

 

“When I was born, the big store did not exist. It was destroyed a few years before. But people talk to me very often about it and I have realized it is part of history. I like this and it excites me. When we started working with Adidas, I discovered that my family was the first to bring the brand to Greece”.

Mary Katrantzou initially dreamed of becoming an architect, something like “the Greek Zaha Hadid”. Ironically, some years later, the famous architect wore her clothes! Mary studied architecture at the Rhode Island School of Design in New York and continued her studies in Central Saint Martins, London, where she studied fashion, textile design and how prints can transform the silhouette. As a student, she managed to sell a series of prints to the American House of Bill Blass, while later she worked alongside designer Sofia Kokosalaki. In 2010, Mary Katrantzou was the winner of the Swiss Textiles Award competition, with an award accompanied by a cash prize of 100,000 euros.

“I have been painting since I was very young”, she admits, looking back to the past. “As a teenager, I painted with a brush and drew a lot. When I started making two-dimensional patterns or prints, I realized that I was good at it, and this also helped as a form of self-concentration exercise for me. I remember having a blanket that I had completely destroyed by staying up all night in my bed and painting over and over again on it. My mother still keeps this blanket”.

 

Apart from her own brand, which is now internationally recognized, Mary has signed collaborations with other big firms such as Swarovski, Adidas, Longchamp, Moncler, Victoria Secret, Bvlgari etc. “It is nice because through these collaborations you come in creative contact with others”.

 

She was unaware that Melania Trump would choose to wear one of her creations. “This was a surprise!” she said while enjoying a cold sip of coffee and added that she was informed by reading about it in British Vogue. Yet, Melania Trump was not the first US lady to wear her clothes. Michelle Obama had monopolized the flashes many a times wearing cocktail dresses by Mary Katrantzou. “She worked with an amazing stylist who believed in me and liked my work. Michelle Obama, a woman I deeply appreciate and respect, took her advice and started wearing my designs. She won me over as a personality when, along with other designers whose clothes she chose to wear, she invited us to spend a day with her at the White House, spoke to us warmly and moved us all. When the celebration was over, she suggested we spend the rest of our day in the White House in a relaxed way, saying “I want you to feel that my home, is your home!”.

Nevertheless, she presented one of the top shows of her career, at the ancient temple of Poseidon at cape Sounion, while she still owns a cottage on the island of Spetses, in the Saronic gulf.

 

“Greece takes me back to the old days, to my teenage years and to the summers I lived next to my grandmother – a true artist and an amazing cook. I love Spetses island because I’ve spent all the summers of my youth there, summers full of cycling outside Poseidon Hotel, cinema nights on the roof, parties in nightclub Figaro and flirting. Even today, when I talk to foreigners, I always suggest that they definitely visit my island”.

Her signature prints and inspirations have been a point of fashion reference for over nine years, now. Mary does not do fashion; she has elevated fashion into the realm of art by defining her own unique personal style.

Fashion show on the temple of Poseidon
For many years, Mary wanted to return to Greece with a special fashion event that would promote both her work as well as the country of her origin, all over the world. The proposal from the charity association “ELPIDA”, through its President Mrs Marianna V. Vardinogiannis and the green light given by the Greek authorities for access to the Temple of Poseidon, at cape Sounion, made it possible. The event admittedly marked this year as “the most important year in her career”.

 

Mary Katrantzou’s show in Sounion was unique. The music of the show was composed especially for the evening by Oscar-winning composer Vangelis Papanathasiou, a hard-to-find artist, and a close friend of Mary’s. The high aesthetics of the show were not guaranteed solely by Mary Katrantzou’s creations, but through collaborators who raised the bar very high. The show is organized by Villa Eugenie, a firm behind many famous shows, such as Chanel’s. The styling baguette of the show was held by another fashion priestess, Sofia Neophytou, publisher of the British magazine “10” and artistic director of Victoria’s Secret shows.

 

Celebrities from all over the world arrived in Greece on the celebration of the 30th anniversary of the ELPIDA Association, which coincided with the 10th anniversary of Mary Katrantzou’s work. The Goodwill Ambassador of Unesco and President of ELPIDA Marianna V. Vardinogianni and the Greek designer, joined forces, and attracted the crème de la crème of international jet setters and the fashion world. Sabine Getty, Anielli’s granddaughter Bianca Brandolini, fashion priestess Suzy Menkes, were just some of the ladies who rushed to respond positively to the invitation. Along with them, the most influential fashion journalists from Paris, London, Milan and New York converged for the show.

Mary Katrantzou’s show also undisputedly constituted an international promotion for Greece. Images of her creations against the backdrop of the Temple of Poseidon were widely circulated around the globe.

 

“I always wanted to do something in Greece, and I am grateful because this became a reality in collaboration with ELPIDA association and in particular Mrs Marianna Vardinogianni, and in fact, for a sacred charity purpose. Returning to your homeland in such a moving way is magical. I will remember this night forever, for many reasons,” said the designer.