Atlas of Fashion Designers

397

Kostas Murkudis

Kostas Murkudis

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As a child, Kostas Murkudis emigrated to the German Democratic Republic, where he

grew up at a complete remove from the massive bombardment of Western images.  ese

origins, marked by aesthetic sobriety, endowed him with an essentialist, controlled, delicate

sensibility, an austere and elegant spirit. His training as an artist began in the prestigious

Lette-Verein design school in Berlin. It is no accident, then, that the legacy of the Bauhaus

movement can be felt in his work, in the form of a revived functionalism and an objective,

rational design that bear witness to the heat of naked fl esh, producing a disturbingly sexy

eff ect.

Kostas did not escape the notice of German designer Wolfgang Joop, with whom he worked

until the mid-80s. It was at this time that he and Helmut Lang entered into a relationship

characterized by a kind of mutual recognition in which they shared work and infl uences

for years. Later, he was tapped by Renzo Rosso to be creative director of New York Indus-

trie. From then on, projects began to multiply: three years cooperating on various interior

design collections with designer Kathleen Waibel, leading to the formation of Haltbar

Murkudis, through which Kostas’s functionalist, comfortable and warm spirit infuses a line

of designs for the timeless, cozy home. At the same time, his lingerie designs for the Ger-

man brand Schiesser represent an exercise in simplicity, functionality and comfort.

All his work is executed with the skill of an artist who knows how to create designs from

one piece, and it is this magical fusion of form and content that makes Kostas a master of

the essential.

Photography by Jork Weismann

398

Kostas Murkudis

Images from the collection of Kostas

Murkudis for the label New York

Industrie, which sought out the

designer’s services to give the brand a

makeover and launch it into the future

through his innovative vision.

Photography by Jork Weismann

399

Kostas Murkudis

Photography by Jork Weismann

400

Kostas Murkudis

- What inspires you?

Everything from people down to virtual travels, movies and traditional craftsmanship.

- What is your dream as a designer?

To see the garments becoming their favorite garment, like a second skin—more and more beautiful after a long distance

of time and trends.

- What has been the most important achievement in your career?

Not achieved yet.

- How important are trends?

Don’t care about trends at all. When we are talking about trends, we are talking about the description of the already

existing.  is is not very interesting in terms of research and development.

- Fashion has always refl ected a certain era. What refl ects twenty-fi rst century fashion?

Ask me the same question in a couple of decades. It is far early to answer this question.  ere is a certain desire for

value.

-  e book you would recommend to every designer is…

All the monographies of Rudi Gernreich.

Kostas Murkudis

Bleibtreustrasse 26

10707 Berlin

Germany

www.kostasmurkudis.net

401

Kostas Murkudis

Photography by Jork Weismann