Combining Fashion and Art with Slovenian Designer Miro Misljen

Miro Misljen is a popular Slovenian fashion designer known for his extravagance and somewhat eccentric style. Miro makes a name for himself as a ‘bad boy’ of fashion and design because his shows are often shocking and they’re designed to carry a social or artistic message. 

In preparation for his upcoming live artistic appearance at the Daffodils Art Festival in Barcelona, we asked Miro to tell us a little more about his inspiration and artistic process.

Let’s start at the beginning… Can you tell us a little bit about your childhood in Slovenia? What are your first memories with art and fashion?

When I think about my childhood in Slovenia, the first word that comes to my mind is creativity. I was a very creative child, but I didn’t know if I was talented. What I remember now, is that I always wanted to create something new. Creating was a way to express my feelings. I felt that it was something that I really needed to do. Nobody needed to motivate me, this mood of creating new things was always part of me. 

I come from a very small town where there wasn’t much to do but I was lucky enough to grow up surrounded by nature, which was a beautiful inspiration. I always connected the colors of  the green forest with the blue river and all this contrast inspired me very much. 

As I long as I remember, I was always creating something related to art or fashion. I created my first dress when I was around 10 years old. 

Why did you choose to study interior design?

I was already doing fashion. So I didn’t want to study fashion because I felt that I had already found my way to express and create through fashion. I wanted to study something new, to learn something new, that’s why I started to study interior design.

Tell us about your very first boutique.

After my first semester of interior design, I understood that I needed to go back to fashion and do what I like the most: high fashion. It was time for me to make my dream come true by opening my very first boutique in Ljubljana, which was an amazing experience. 

What are you most known for in the fashion world?

I think that when you say the name Miro Misljen, most know me for my creativity in high fashion. Sometimes I break the codes of the standard of high fashion with my form of stitching, combining different types of fabrics and design. I’m often called the fashion bad boy. I’m not here to be trendy and I just like to create wearable fashion art. I think that’s why people like to wear the Miro Misljen brand. 

What are your favorite themes to use in your artwork?

My favorite themes and inspiration in my work are people. Different types of people, it could be marginalized people or normal people taking the metro who attract my attention because they have an unusual haircut or clothes. 

I also like theater, literature and nature. Nature is something very important to me, aesthetically speaking. In nature, you can find a lot of asymmetric forms. Nature is life and that’s what I try to transpose on my work, making dresses.

How did you come to Barcelona? What do you like most about living here?

I dreamt about living in Barcelona ever since my first visit. It’s a city full of art and creativity. What I like the most is its architecture and of course the beach which is very close. I love that people come from everywhere. The multicultural aspect of the city inspires me very much. In Barcelona, you might or might not like its architecture, but it’s for sure inspiring. I think that if Gaudí had lived in another city, he wouldn’t have been able to create all this amazing art. Barcelona is a city with such good vibes. I’m so happy to call it home. 

You have a live painting performance coming up at the Daffodils Spring Art Festival. Can you tell us a little bit about this event and what you’re planning?

I will put art and fashion together at the same time for my live art performance at this festival. Guests will be able to see my work process, where I will be creating art on stage on a model in front of the public. This will be very interesting.

This is a very nice event in an amazing location in Barcelona, with a lot of great artists and designers with whom I love to collaborate. I think that it will be a very special event with different forms of art in one place, which is the point of the festival.

Do you have any other big projects coming up that you’d like to tell us about?

I’m now back in Slovenia in order to create a big showroom. That’s something that I was really looking forward to doing after a 2-year break. I’m very happy to get in touch again with my clients, who are my biggest inspiration. 

Thanks for sharing with us Miro. We can’t wait to come see your work!

By Amelia Johannsen