By Luis Miranda
One spring afternoon, we met Cris at the Costa Brava. Rather than a formal interview with stilted, stilted questions, I proposed that his article for Vístete Local be a relaxed and easygoing conversation. With a beer in hand and Madonna (one of his favorite singers) playing in the background, Cris Miranda shared his vision of local fashion, the differences between his generation and that of his more experienced colleagues, and his role as a teacher and trainer of new generations of designers at just 27 years old. He had just finished his participation in the Redress Design Award, so that was also a topic of conversation.
Cristián Miranda presented his first runway show with VisteLaCalle and never stopped from there. He has spent five years transitioning into sustainable fashion and "understanding fashion as a vehicle for change for the environment and society ." In these five years, Cris has managed to stand out and for his brand to gain a place in the increasingly competitive local fashion industry.
-Do you consider yourself part of the new generation of Chilean fashion?
I don't know if I consider myself new, because I've been working in this for a few years now, but I do think I share the idea of a fashion industry that we younger people want to build: an industry that grows through collaboration, not being mean to others; building, because we have nothing.
-What other characteristics does this new generation have?
First, we're all aware that the environment can't take any more, so we're incorporating an environmental or social sustainability angle into our work. What characterizes This generation is all about collaboration, creating networks and spaces for fashion, and sharing them with others. We don't have an established industry, we don't even have a creative industry; we're creating from the precariousness of what remained after the dictatorship, and we're all aware of that.
-What characteristics did older generations of designers have that are no longer in line with younger ones?
I feel like designers were once viewed as a kind of deity, whose creativity allowed them to do whatever they wanted. There was a lot of competition, a lot of putting down colleagues and saying, "Don't take my chance because there aren't any more." There was also this desire to imitate what was happening in Europe, what was happening in the United States. In the last ten years, I'd say, the switch has shifted toward collaboration, to seeing your fellow designer as someone in the same context as you, trying to bring a project forward with the same difficulties you face. You can't find good fabrics, it's hard to find seamstresses, etc. Understanding that context has led current generations to seek out collaboration and friendships within the industry to create collaborative design opportunities.
Would you agree with me that precariousness is something that is repeated in both older and newer generations?
Definitely. I think precariousness is something that defines the textile industry in Chile.
-What's it like dealing with that? Isn't it tiring?
It's exhausting. I'm grateful every time a new design project emerges, and I think about how incredible it is that something is developing despite all the adversities that exist in this country, from the economic, social, cultural, and market context. It's very difficult to make a design project financially sustainable. In my opinion, that's what makes you a successful designer or not: how capable you are of making a living from your project. I still can't make a living from my design project, but rather from other things I do to support my brand, which comes from the depths of my heart.
-How has your experience been as a fashion academic?
Thanks to Karina Vukovic, who was my professor in 2014 at UNAB. I've always been a busybody and a very knowledgeable person; I strive to learn and I've become very attached to my professors. At the university, I was given an assistantship for Karina's class, then I took other classes until I was given my own course, an elective called "Japanese Aesthetics."
-What do you teach, what do you want to pass on to your students?
I create opportunities for them to learn that are interesting. I'm not going to lecture them about Japanese aesthetics being this, this, and this. No, the idea is to help them find their own identity through an appreciation of Japanese pop culture, from a personal and migrant perspective, based on what I experienced while I was there. The idea is to understand the appreciation of Japanese culture and not fall into the appropriation we've seen so many times.
-Did your interest in Japanese culture date back to before you lived there?
Since I was a child, I loved anime, music, the Japanese language, and it was always there as a gravitational energy in my work. At one point, I decided to go and find out what was happening there, experience it firsthand, and get to know the creative industry in Japan.
-What tools, besides aesthetics, were you able to salvage for your work from your stay in Japan?
I think being aware of myself, my creative capacity, and the ability to develop projects and seek to do things in a culture diametrically opposed to ours, with a language I didn't understand at first. Testing myself in that way was a way for me to realize that after that, I could do whatever came to mind. It helped me gain confidence.
In addition, it helped me become a creative entrepreneur, more than just a creative one. At some point, I managed to work in design there and learned a bit about the fashion business. Before moving to Japan, I always refused to do that. I called myself an independent designer and didn't pay attention to such things.
-Would you agree with me again that this is another issue shared by older and younger generations: the lack of business acumen among designers?
Definitely. Since we're all creating from precarious circumstances, it's very understandable that we become somewhat punkish about the topic and rant against capitalism, but to be able to live off creativity, you have to know how to be an entrepreneur, monitor the market, and act accordingly. We need to be more cautious about the issue, be financially cautious, and know that the product has to be sold eventually.
-And are your products selling?
Yes, not much, but because I produce very little. My brand project was to create unique, very small-scale pieces, but we have to move toward a future that's scalable and reproducible.
-How do you scale a business like upcycling, which essentially focuses on unique pieces and small-scale business models?
You have to be very smart about how you upcycle and understand sustainable fashion not only from the perspective of reusing fabrics, but also using fabrics in ways that don't generate waste. I'm super focused on zero waste, which is creating without generating waste, and that's easier to scale.
-How did your participation in the Redress Design Award 2022 come about? I understand it's one of the most important recognitions in sustainable fashion, right?
A couple of years ago, I tried to participate and didn't make it. Then I moved to Japan, and I applied what I learned there to this year's selection process. I took all the kimonos I brought back from Japan, disassembled them, and reused them without generating waste. I brought it, they liked it, I was among the semifinalists, and then I made it to the finals. I had a ton of masterclasses with industry experts, people with positions in very relevant companies, from whom I learned a lot about marketing, public relations, and how to sell a project. I was also able to build a network of international contacts that could be very useful.
Do you think fashion business training remains a shortcoming of academia in Chile?
It's a shortcoming that is being addressed. It's also a shortcoming that can be resolved through student interest, empowering them to take ownership of their own life plans and being able to stand up and defend their ideas in front of their customers.
Do independent designers have anything to learn from fast fashion?
I think retail is realizing that the model isn't infinite, that the one they're proposing will end. They're all greenwashing circular fashion. We need to create a symbiosis between retail and independent fashion, where the former supports circular fashion and designer brands in a real way. We need to find opportunities for convergence.
-What's next for Cris Miranda?
New runways and new products are coming. For the first time, I'm going to stock up on clothing. Growing. I'm focused on turning my creative project into a creative business, which will generate more work for other designers and seamstresses. I'd like to invite everyone who wants to be part of this life project of mine to come and join me.