AUSTRIAN NEWCOMERS
AUSTRIAN NEWCOMERS TO WATCH TEXT JENNI KOUTNI
STRONG, COURAGEOUS & BRAVE GÜÇ When Janette Papas worked at Mugler, she soon became aware of the problems with sizing. To this day, clothing designs are still mainly fitted on tall, slim models. But she wants to change that with her label Güç, which she founded in 2020. In Turkish, the name means “strong, courageous and brave”. The designer’s fashionable approach is strongly influenced by her roots: the small village on the TurkishSyrian border, where her great-grandmother lived, showed her that it doesn’t take much in the way of possessions to be happy. That’s why she makes clothes to last and adds details that enable the wearer to easily change the look to match their own personal style. And all garments are made to order, which is unusual, but avoids overproduction, according to the designer. Customers have to wait for up to a maximum of 10 days for a Güç piece – which isn’t actually that long, if you want to help make a difference, right? gucofficial.com
N° 83
NOTES ON POP CULTURE FLORENTINA LEITNER Whether it’s T-shirts, an evening dress or her popular catsuits that envelop almost the entire body, Florentina Leitner’s ‘Semi Couture’ has somewhat of a camp vibe about it. Which isn’t surprising really, considering that it’s designed to be fun and remind the fashion industry not to take itself so seriously. Entitled ‘Vertigo’, her final collection at the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp was met with international acclaim. The designer mostly works with upcycled materials: lining from old vintage coats, shoulder pads, gloves and even socks are repurposed and have new life breathed into them. Although her designs are often girly and feminine, the newcomer label now also has a male clientele. The Austrian designer draws her inspiration from pop and high culture, as proven by her collections ‘The Royal Leitners’ and ‘Der Zauberberg’. florentinaleitner.com
14
