CGD

"These are giant walking cacti embedded in lady suits that imitate water, stone and other natural structures that co-exist in the desert." Sofya Samareva

For Sofya Samareva, designing hats is like making sculptures. By focusing on distinctive individuals who don't meet conventional notions and expectations, she freely crosses the line between functional hats and works of art. Even though she only established her brand in 2014, she has already collaborated with various leading Czech and foreign designers. She first won acclaim for her graduation work at the AAAD a collection of monochromatic felt hats of bold colours in the form of archetypal hair styles including the bob, the chignon and the male pompadour. Fashion designer Liběna Rochová used Sofya's collection of hair styles at the A/W 2014 fashion show. Sofya has also collaborated with fashion designer Monika Drápalová – designing headpieces in bold pastel colours that blur the line between caps, diadems and hats. At designSUPERMARKET 2014, she was invited by the curators of FashionClash Maastricht to present her work at the festival in 2015. She designed a collection of extravagant pieces to go with a collection designed by Dutch designer Joelle Boers for the Dutch festival of young talented designers. Both taking their inspiration from nature, deserts and seas, they designed large hats made from colour rabbit felt reminiscent of sand cakes and the undersea world of starfish and shells. Sofya showed an even more daring approach with her designs for a fashion show by the Israeli designer-duo Muslin Brothers in Tel Aviv this autumn. She complemented their collection of urban unisex clothes with hats made from ropes. Clothes from the collection can be adjusted into various shapes using thick cords. Her rope headpieces allow the observer to imagine the outlines of caps and hats. In 2016, Sofya will present her work at the International Fashion Showcase in London. She has also been invited to take part in FashionClash Maastricht 2016.

Veronika Ruppert