Bravo’s Euros of Hollywood and International pop star Bleona was hard to miss at the American Music Awards (AMAs) in Los Angeles on Sunday, Nov. 23 with her see-through dress designed by couture designer Shahla Dorriz.
We got a chance to an exclusive interview with Creative Director of Maison du Shahla Dorriz, Alexandre Dorriz, about one of the most talked about dresses on the red carpet.
Javanan: How did you come to meet Bleona? What was she like to work with?
Alexandre: Bleona and my mother met several years back when I was younger and when she first moved to LA. She became a very close friend of ours. With her new show on the rise we knew there was something very particular she was interested in aesthetically when she approached us. It’s funny because I watched some clips of her show for the first time and she has such an attitude on the show but I really feel it’s misconstrued as this enormously strong femininity of a woman who is full of determination and action. We had fun with the entire process of choosing and styling the piece at the Maison and it turned into something very extravagant that we really didn’t expect – because the dress itself was not intended to be completely nude underneath, but a part of a gown. It manifested itself as a statement piece in the fitting room alone.
Javanan: I heard the dress was sewn in to her; how long did this process take?
Alexandre: The gown is completely hand woven and the crystals were sewn between each weave. We also have about 100 Swarovski crystals sewn to the gown. We also custom-designed with dozens of Swarovski crystals her, excuse my French, panties. For the day of the AMAs we decided to sew her inside of the garment to perpetuate the nude illusion. This was a five hour process in itself that morning.
Javanan: Is this most risqué of the Shahla Dorriz couture works?
Alexandre: Absolutely. We have never come close to doing something so wild and extravagant with our couture collections and we absolutely had a joy. It’s been a priority for the fashion house to be more contemporary and relevant while sustaining our couture legacy and background. Our house has had several tangents of signature labels that are very distinguished from one another; the couture collections consist of the ethnic and more traditional brands, then the Rumi line as well (which is such a far cry from this, my goodness!). I think what we’ve always done well as a fashion house is playing psychoanalysis and understanding what exactly it is that our friends and clients want on themselves, letting their voice be heard through our scissors and textiles.
Javanan: How are you taking what the critics have to say, good and bad?
Alexandre: It’s actually been fun and I’ve been enjoying it. I know that’s not something I should say but, frankly, I think Bleona was calculating this outcome and we were ready to tag along for the ride. Of course people were going to be upset with a woman arriving to the AMAs dressed the way she was! That was no stretch of our imagination. It’s more about pushing the envelope and addressing what is occurring in contemporary spheres. The female body and values have completely been thrown into question with new music videos and performers appearing on stage with nothing on. This has been both a form of female empowerment and a critique on social female values, depending on who you ask. We, as a civilization, will always be existing in a limbic space where we look at the time in history and what identity and fashion derive to us as a human being, because of the repercussions of pulling off something like this and being blacklisted – the same as wearing a two piece swimsuit in the 40s. And we don’t find the gown to be any more original than it being a commentary on socio-politics in fashion and notions of celebrity. As an artisan, our goal is always to create the greatest quality form of couture, whatever that may be; and, that is exactly what we created.
Javanan: What are some of your favorite reactions to the dress?
Alexandre: Oh gosh…. Don’t let me…
But fashionnstyle.com did rate the gown on to top 10 sexiest gowns of the AMAs along with JLos and Kendall Jenner’s! That was a breath of fresh air! *laughs*
Javanan: Did you think it would have this kind of reaction?
Alexandre: I did… And I didn’t…
See more of Maison du Shahla
Dorriz at www.shahladorriz.com