Ukraine has been living in Western Europe since the day he arrived at Milan Fashion Week in February last year to find his country invaded. Now in Paris, he devotes his energy to providing visibility to creatives in his hometown. In May and July, along with his partner Sofiya Kvasha, at the events of the fashion industry including Charlotte Chesnais, Mathias Augustyniak of M/M Paris, PR expert Lucien Pagès and the charitable nonprofit Fashion Girls for Humanity (founded by Miki Higasa) With the help of Kikka Hanazawa, Julie Gilhart and Tomoko Ogura), he held a pop-up at Chesnais’ yet-to-be-opened boutique on Boulevard Saint-Germain.
During PFW, Brykalin helped choreograph Vogue Ukrainian, at the invitation of its owners Armand and Martine Hadida, acquired the stylish Marais boutique Leclaireur to showcase Ukrainian fashion. At the end of the show, he sat down with Vogue
to discuss how to help Ukrainian designers feel noticed, that fashion is a resistance, and that it Relevance in wartime. This conversation is condensed.
Hi Venya, we’re almost past fashion month. What do you think?
Fashion people are always talking about the conversation and I honestly don’t understand what it is. It’s like looking at the shards of a mirror and trying to figure out what the whole thing looks like. I find myself wondering if fashion – in the broadest sense – still reflects the times. Honestly, I’m not sure I have an answer, I think it reflects the state of things. I think the moment we live in is so epic – in terms of society, politics, gender – all these topics are burning with urgency. But I don’t see so much on the runway and I’m not sure why this is.
On the other hand, there is a lot of talk of optimism.
Yes, maybe it’s just a delay since the collection is developed ahead of time. As a community, we repeat ourselves so as not to comment on certain things. Fashion is in the realm of escapism, but I don’t think escapism is how creative people should think, how artists and businesses should operate now. It’s a way of denying freedom and reflecting on responsibility for what’s going on. This is a real missed opportunity. Ironically to me, the closest fashion has come to news this season is when the Queen dies. Everything else feels a little delineated in a way.
So what does “real” look like?
is definitely not a military uniform, if you ask me!
