How I Found My Voice Through Fashion

Fashion holds many meanings for different individuals. To some it’s a canvas for personal expression, a journey of self-discovery, or to some even culturally symbolic. As the anticipation builds for the annual Icon Show at Middlesex Dubai, we spoke to a few graduates, each of whom offered insights into their creative vision, inspirations, and the transformative power of fashion.

Karin Mahmoudzadeh

Drawing from her Middle Eastern background Karin Mahmoudzadeh’s interests lie in stage and costume design, and to create unique ready-to-wear pieces for self-expression. She is highly inspired by music, with a focus on punk music and culture.

“I have always found that music and fashion have a symbiotic relationship. Where there is music, there is also an entire group of people who dress a certain way to outwardly show the world that they like that music. I utilise my love for music in many ways to draw inspiration for my designs, the primary method being creating a customised playlist for each collection to help me visualise the story and the general message I am trying to portray. I also like to draw inspiration from Middle Eastern culture, specifically Iranian and Kurdish culture. The Middle East has so much beauty to offer that is often overlooked by the majority.”

Her collection ‘Mohajer’ (meaning immigrant) at the Icon Show, pays homage to her roots and a nostalgic longing for home. Karin loves to complement her designs with jewellery and accessories, and she has a knack for styling and art direction. She’s driven by storytelling and prioritises research, spending time going to the library or exploring films and artists to collect inspiration from subcultures throughout the decades.

Reflecting on her journey, Karin highlighted an important project that significantly shaped her perception as a fashion designer during her three years studying fashion at MDX Dubai: “A turning point for me was designing menswear in my second year. It was the first time I got to do a whole collection dedicated to two musical genres I love - Punk and Ska - and it was the collection that made me realise my love for doing extensive research on fashion history and subcultural attire. Everything you see certain subcultures wear, from punk tartan patterns to ska porkpie hats; all have a significant reason as to why they were adopted in the first place. It made me truly understand that to be the best designer I can be, I must constantly educate myself on fashion history, and luckily, I enjoy that process.”

She expressed that during her BA Honours Fashion Design degree at MDX Dubai, she learned the fundamentals of making clothes such as pattern making, sewing and tailoring. “There are so many things I want to be and do. I definitely see myself venturing into fashion styling at some point because it is something I genuinely enjoy, and it is relevant today. But I also have an undying love for costumes and stage design, so hopefully one day, I can be backstage on some production, bringing all the required costumes to life. Inevitably, I want to have my own brand eventually, but for now I would rather work with other brands, try out different fields and experience as much as I possibly can and continue being creative as much as I can possibly be.”

Arvin Jalali

Immersed in visual arts, Arvin’s love for costume designing began at an early age and is one of the many reasons why he took up the BA Hons Fashion Design programme at MDX Dubai. His designs portray landscapes of film, graphic novels and art.

“I love movies. If you were to look at any of my peers’ faces whenever I explain the influence of movies on me, you’d see a lot of eyes rolling about in their sockets. Film costuming is one of my earliest loves and it translates into my work, depending on which of my collections you look at, in the way they’re either evocative of specific genres or characters, who I look at muses, or how they inform the drama in my designs.”

His upcoming collection explores the complexities of the human psyche, inspired by his own feelings such as disassociation, imposter syndrome and self-deprecation. The collection encapsulates the emotional war between demanding attention and detesting the limelight.

“I’m a really self-conscious person. I knew that I’d been developing a pretty big ego over the first two years, I feel like every artist does, and I was self-conscious enough to know that this ego would be shattered. It was, and I was still not prepared for it.” But he evolved and gained important insight into the creative process during the three-year Fashion Design programme.

“Once upon a time, my brain would go automatic as I doodled whatever appealed to me, never really knowing why those specific shapes and proportions felt stimulating. Now, it’s become a conversation to be had with myself. *Why* do I like *this*? *Where* does it come from? From there, you can also see all the empty spaces in your way of thinking and figure out how to meaningfully fill them. This is great because this can apply in every medium of art beyond fashion, and I am a serial doodler, so my drawings have gotten a little better because of that” said Arvin.

Looking ahead Arvin envisions a career in illustration driven by his connection to his craft. “Whatever I end up doing in the future has got to do with illustrating. It’s my favourite thing that I’m good at. I don’t like to see life as an excel sheet where I map out what I am to do when I reach 30. I see things like studying fashion as opening a door, and I like open doors. My career goal is to feel creatively satisfied, which doesn’t have to mean it has to be happy. But if I were to pursue the field of fashion, it would have to be in costume design for screen productions, and the first step to becoming a successful costume designer is to have a really good portfolio, which I’ll have to prepare soon for our submissions.”

Tanya Saldanha

For Tanya Saldanha, fashion is more than mere aesthetics and she began her journey in fashion without any prior knowledge of designing or sewing. When asked about her early influences in fashion designing, this is what Tanya had to say: “Ever since I can remember, art has been my compass, guiding me through life's twists and turns. It's no surprise that this love for creativity led me straight into the world of fashion design. To me, fashion isn't just about stitching fabrics together; it's about weaving stories, painting emotions, and turning imagination into wearable art.”

During her early days of the Fashion Design course at MDX, Tanya started from basics including sketching, sewing, and draping fabrics. But as time went on, she explored beyond the basics and found herself diving into cultures, trends and in her own words ‘a rich tapestry of human expression.’ She also learned to work in teams, manage time effectively and work under pressure.

She has evolved both professionally and personally during the three years of studies in BA Hons Fashion Design and she feels that the more she stays true to herself, the more people connect with her work. Her collection for the Icon Show 2024 celebrates the beauty of artistic expressions: “In a bustling world of art and expression, my collection narrates a story of the abstract, the avant-garde, and the beauty found in randomness. It draws inspiration from the chaotic yet harmonious nature of an artist's workspace. Each garment in this collection is a testament to the beauty that emerges when art takes its own course, celebrating the randomness and spontaneity that lie at the heart of artistic expression.”

She also stated that the fashion school has taught her some important life lessons like bouncing back from failures, adapting to new challenges and standing up for what she believes in as well as advocacy for sustainability.

Eager to embrace what’s ahead of her, she hopes to get experience with innovative design techniques, push her limits further and let her creativity take her forward to where she’s supposed to be. “I look forward to soaking up as much experience as I can – internships, attending industry events etc. After a couple of years of honing my craft and soaking in all that fashion goodness, who knows? I’ll take the plunge and start my very own brand. Fingers crossed!”

These narratives offer a glimpse into some of the 17 talented designers who will showcase their work on the runway at the Icon Show 2024.

If you’re an aspiring fashion designer, or a fashion enthusiast, check out more about the BA Honours Fashion Design programme, alongside our brand-new BA Honours Fashion (Design Technologies) programme launched for September 2024.

Click here for more information - https://www.mdx.ac.ae/courses/art-and-design

Shajan Thomas