CHOPOVA LOWENA
The design duo of the label Chopova Lowena met on their first day at Central Saint Martins in 2011 and bonded over a love of skirts. Emma Chopova, 28, comes from Bulgaria and Laura Lowena, 29, hails from England. Despite growing up in small villages and never being surrounded by art as children, the designers were influenced by pop culture and craft. They name transgressional authors — Sylvia Plath, Virginia Woolf and Chuck Palahniuk — and books — “Faces in the Water” (1961), “Naked Lunch” (1959), “Walden” (1854) and “Steppenwolf” (1927) — as influences; Jean Paul Gaultier and John Galliano as fashion forefathers they respect. “We were both really interested in [expressing ourselves] and making things, which is ultimately what led us to fashion,” says Chopova.
It is a Saturday night in September, a hectic month for the designers, and Chopova finds a pocket of time to cosy up at home and write to T Singapore. She started the co-owned label with Lowena, in June 2018, by launching “Kukeri,” a book that collages the fashion of their respective heritages. They were then discovered on Instagram by Matchesfashion and went on to release a capsule collection on the e-tailer’s site. For over two years now, Chopova Lowena has produced pieces that upcycle textiles and fabrics from Bulgaria and England, utilising traditional techniques that they are passionate about.
Denne historien er fra November 2020-utgaven av T Singapore: The New York Times Style Magazine.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent ? Logg på
Denne historien er fra November 2020-utgaven av T Singapore: The New York Times Style Magazine.
Start din 7-dagers gratis prøveperiode på Magzter GOLD for å få tilgang til tusenvis av utvalgte premiumhistorier og 9000+ magasiner og aviser.
Allerede abonnent? Logg på
Look At Us
As public memorials face a public reckoning, there’s still too little thought paid to how women are represented — as bodies and as selves.
Two New Jewellery Collections Find Their Inspiration In The Human Anatomy
Two new jewellery collections find their inspiration in the human anatomy.
She For She
We speak to three women in Singapore who are trying to improve the lives of women — and all other gender identities — through their work.
Over The Rainbow
How the bright colours and lively prints created by illustrator Donald Robertson brought the latest Weekend Max Mara Flutterflies capsule collection to life.
What Is Love?
The artist Hank Willis Thomas discusses his partnership with the Japanese fashion label Sacai and the idea of fashion in the context of the art world.
The Luxury Hotel For New Mums
Singapore’s first luxury confinement facility, Kai Suites, aims to provide much more than plush beds and 24-hour infant care: It wants to help mothers with their mental and emotional wellbeing as well.
Who Gets To Eat?
As recent food movements have focused on buying local or organic, a deeper and different conversation is happening among America’s food activists: one that demands not just better meals for everyone but a dismantling of the structures that have failed to nourish us all along.
Reimagining The Future Of Fashion
What do women want from their clothes and accessories, and does luxury still have a place in this post-pandemic era? The iconic designer Alber Elbaz thinks he has the answers with his new label, AZ Factory.
A Holiday At Home
Once seen as the less exciting alternative to an exotic destination holiday, the staycation takes on new importance.
All Dressed Up, Nowhere To Go
Chinese supermodel He Sui talks about the unseen pressures of being an international star, being a trailblazer for East Asian models in the fashion world, and why, at the end of the day, she is content with being known as just a regular girl from Wenzhou.