Mitra Part 2

Above: Shots from the Runway by Mario Peralta

This is a continuation from an Interview Started Last Friday. Argie Mitra, designer at DRESSMITRA tries to sum up her favorite era: 

This is a really difficult question. Two years ago, without hesitation, I would have said the Victorian era. I think the fact of the matter is that I love any era in fashion that distorts the female silhouette! From the super wide panniers of the late 18th century to the giant "gigot" sleeves of the mid-19th century to the S-shaping spoonbill corsets of the Edwardian era, I have to give props to women in history for enduring fashion that most would call ridiculous today.

All photos above from MITRA SS2012 "coquilles" presentation - December 8th, 2011 at Walkers Wine Bar. Photography by Mario Peralta Hair by Mindy Stamulis Salon and Paul Mitchell the School Makeup by Lindsey Jones-Wirht, Amy LaVe, & Stephanie Moore.

In Part 1 of this interview fashion designer and Etsy shop owner Argie Mitra talked about working with photographers, and models to create her stunning site and treasury worthy Etsy listings. We left off on Mitra's Fine Arts degree at Jacksonville University, and her experiences in the art world, dance, and theatre.

So, did dance, theatre and Fine Art influence you to become a designer, or was it the other way around?

- I have always needed to be creative in some way, so I can't say which came first. When I was around 5 I remember selling drawings in my driveway for $.25 to $1 to my neighbors and my big brother's friends, but then I also remember undressing my Barbies and taping and safety pinning napkins and scraps into different dress designs! Haha :)

At what age did you consciously realize you wanted to do what you're doing now? 

- What I am doing now is like nothing I've ever imagined. When I was 13 and I wanted to be a designer, I saw myself in New York and Gwyneth Paltrow stopping at my studio for a fitting for the Academy Awards. It's nice to have that idealistic goal, but reality (a.k.a. financial resources) forces you to focus on the amazing opportunities you have in front of you. While I do design my Mitra line and I get to paint in my free time, I work mainly as a freelance wardrobe stylist or costume designer for fashion, beauty, commercial, and editorial shoots, and in TV and film. I really enjoy collaborating with so many different types of people on sets. My younger self would have never known about the collaborative process.

How does your understanding of composition and aesthetics influence your Etsy work?

- In fine art, I think it is important to know composition, aesthetics, and the elements of design, but then it is just as important to be able to break the rules. I remember going to the MoMA in New York City with my cousin and she looked at a Jackson Pollock painting and said she could've done what he did when she was five years old. I was quick to defend that he was the first to create work like his, and at such a large scale. While fashion is a completely different ball game, the concept still applies: know the female body and have a sense of trend, but challenge yourself to think outside of the box and design something new. 


To See more link to Mitra on Etsy, on the web, or on Facebook.