Who are we in the Fashion industry?

As simple as this question is, there is more to it than: We are simply the ones that spend all of our money.

One of my friends asked me quite recently when i moved to Milan, why fashion, is useless. Have you seen that Dior´s collection (Really surprised that he knows the name), who on his sane mind will buy something like that?!

I must say i hesitated before i answered, but then i just went on to say what would make me think that this Career was the one for me:

Well,  your looking at Couture my friend. What is that? Its art. Its the confection, Passion, inspiration and the top materials that are merged in one outfit. You said it was art? Yes. Who are you to decide that? Well I'm their inspiration.

We are all their inspiration. Its a fact, that every designer goes to the street to get their ideas, their inspiration. Its what we where, the way we walk, our every day life that is so interesting that they try to reflect it in their own personal way. In this industry, in this world, we are more than buyers, we are more than cash to them (well to some of them) we are like the Mona Lisa. Its the exactly same for Art. I have seen so many paintings with a red spot in the middle and they are called art. They are, because at the end of all the cultural aspects, stereotypes and superficial aspects, its a form of expression its a form of viewing the world.

I must say that now, half way through my studies, i still think the exact same thing. Karl Lagerfeld once said in a documentary: Every single job is like that. Its not fair. They only pick on fashion because int he surface there is this fabulous life, money and luxury underneath; its unfair, hard and frustrating and every job is like, and that is life.

In fact it is and i love every minute of it.

By the way, what my friend was referring was to Christian Dior´s Houte Couture Autumn/Winter 2005 where he used as many of his Inspirations Peru. I must add, that it is a master piece, OK take all the amount of work, great materials and time it went on creating every single one of those outfits, but focus on this fact: that's his view on our culture. The brightness of the colors, The eccentricity, the art, the history behind everyone that he met in his visit. He is paying tribute my friend.

And if you want something more simple: He put us in the map.

Who are we? We are their everything.

[IMAGE: Marcio Madeira for VOGUE.COM]