Fashion designer Mona Gutheil considers the debate between function and dysfunction as the starting point for her work. The designer, who adds performative elements to his collections, emphasizes that in an era when social media users are constantly bombarded with content, the designer focuses on carefully choosing where to look and engage.

When did you first notice your interest in fashion?

Mona Gutheil: Me and my brother used to dress up almost every day when we were bored, because we always had access to a huge cupboard full of funny disguises in the basement. (yes it still exists!) I found it especially exciting to dress up our cat or random objects aswell, which became humanised through the costumes. Because is clothing always limited to the human body? I‘ve also always found it exciting how people are perceived in public depending on how they dress up, because I‘ve been through many subcultures myself.

“My starting point is always an object and the reference clothing associated with it.”
-Mona

How would you describe your design language?

Mona Gutheil: My starting point is always an object and the reference clothing associated with it. All my designs are multifunctional as well as transformable and can thus be worn in two ways. This also creates a performative level that borders on satire.To put it in a Nutshell:
What are you most inspired by?

Mona Gutheil: To be honest, gadgets & gimmicks, because I find the crux between function and dysfunction incredibly exciting.
Because on the one hand gadgets promise a function, but actually they are superfluous after a few times of use? i find it exciting to put them in a different context and thus give them back their value.

How would you describe your perspective on fashion in general?

Mona Gutheil: Fashion is a big word and has endless interpretations. Nevertheless Fashion plays a very decisi- ve role in the formation of identity and self-realisation and is a reflection of the spirit of the time.

In your opinion, how does the consumption culture affect the fashion industry?

Mona Gutheil: Significantly, due to consumer culture and capitalism, fashion has partly developed into fast fashion. Fashion is understood by many as a dynamic of in and out, as a cyclical design principle that drives consumption. I think it‘s terrible that there‘s this whole seasonal system, everything is moving faster and faster, and the product itself is losing its value.

How would you describe your designs in 3 words?

Mona Gutheil: multifunctional mobility manipulation

What are your sources of motivation in your job?

Mona Gutheil: As a designer, you have a huge responsibility because you create and bring new things in the world. That‘s why my work only has a raison d‘être for me if it‘s something new and has a funci- ton and not a design that‘s been replicated 100 times. This is exactly what drives me – to create something new and of course always with a pinch of humour.

Which fashion trend from the past would you like to bring to the present?

Mona Gutheil: Trends come and go – and no matter what i say it will come again anyway, That‘s our cyclical design system. I think the greatest art is to create something that stays and is genius no matter when i look at it, whether that‘s in 5 or 20 years

What message did you want to give to the fashion world with your project ‘You Won’t Believe’?

Mona Gutheil: What do special offers and cat pictures, celebrity affairs and crazy clickbait headlines have in common? They are all popular bait for the most valuable commodity in the all-dominant media landscape, our attention. Because attention, unlike money and material possessions, cannot be saved or increased. It is limited – and that makes it enormously valuable. Our attention now unconsciously follows the media landscape, which I have transformed into practice through form follows function.

What excites you about the future?

Mona Gutheil: I‘m super excited to implement all my new ideas independently of anything and to publish one idea per month!

What’s good for you these days?

Mona Gutheil: To be honest, i‘m looking forward to having time for myself again after my bachelor‘s degree, for example just sleep in, haha.

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