Trendsetter | EWELINA SZYMANSKA

Presented by KOTTÉ

Designer @ewelina.szym

Photographer WIKTORIA RADECKA @vultery

Model MAGDALENA FROST @_frostmagdalena

Hair & Makeup ANGIE JORKOWSKA @angejork

Tell us about you and your brand.

I am a graduate of the International School of Costume and Fashion Design in Warsaw. I also completed a professional tailoring course at the Polish Fashion Institute. I won the second edition of the pro-ecological Polish competition Responsible Fashion Awards 2020 and took first place in the Radom Fashion Show 2021 competition for fashion designers. In addition, I am currently working on developing my own clothing brand. My view of fashion and my participation in it is complex.

Although I am a new artist, I started designing quite late and want to show others that you can find your passion, make your dreams come true, and achieve something at any age. Also, my many years of life as an immigrant and the feeling of never belonging to one place on earth has pushed me to draw inspiration from my travels. It is a care free and joyful time for me, and it is this joy and positive energy that I want to share with people. We need to break away from the grey reality at times and that is why in my collections focus on colors, prints, and interesting forms. However, I still show care for the environment. All of my work, despite its unusual visual aspects, never hurts anyone.

If you could recreate the wardrobe for any film, which one would you choose and why?

I would choose The 5th Element and it’s not because I don’t like the costumes in the film. On the contrary, I love what Jean Paul Gaultier has created. In a science fiction movie, costumes tend to take the back seat to the designs of alien races and spaceships, but Benson took the opposite approach. Even the supporting roles weredressed impressively. Because I love these costumes so much and the approach to creating a coherent and futuristic world full of characters dressed to impress, I would want to take on the task.

What has been the most memorable experience of your career?

The most unforgettable experience for me was winning my first competition—the Responsible Fashion Awards. It took me about three weeks to make this one final silhouette. It was a huge coat, which was also hand-painted by me. I felt a lot of stress that day, especially around public speaking and presenting my work to the jury, but the feeling of someone appreciating your hard work and the moment you’ve realized you won, is priceless. It really helped me to rebuild my self-confidence and believe in my abilities.

If you had full financial freedom, what five things you would you do first?

I would invest some money in medicine. I would like to find cures for incurable diseases. No one deserves to suffer from them. I would invest in education as well, so that, regardless of where you live, everyone has equal opportunities for learning and well-paid jobs. In addition, I would allocate money to finding new renewable energy sources. I would like our present and future generations to not have to worry about the condition of our planet. I would also spend money on cleaning the planet and educating people in the field of ecology. Lastly, I would use this opportunity to travel the world!