Clothing as a Celebration - Gloria Saldarriaga
Welcome to the series
"Clothing as Celebration"
Stories about powerful women with style and substance.
Gloria Saldarriaga
Gloria is a well-known fashion icon and reference in Colombia, she promotes Latin American design and is muse and mentor to many. When asked about her collector's persona, she insists that her urge is never about possessing, “I am interested in the search, the learning process, how one idea leads me to the next journey…and then how a specific interest provides me with a sense of place and time… and then I get to share my finds which makes my life meaningful and fun.”
“Clothing is a celebration. A celebration of our physical body, as it carries us day by day throughout our lifetime. A celebration of our unique spirits, projecting our innermost facets for the rest of the world to discover and nurturing them when we need to turn inward”
-Eileen Ray
Gloria says that in this digital era, almost everything can be collected, an image is just a click away. “For me, memory is so important, to find ways to be witness of time, to find a way to trap a little of that finite element that constitute our lives….”
For her there are no boundaries that separate art, fashion and folk art. Everything is connected to aesthetics and has different meanings. Fashion could be a flavor for a day, art can be memorable and folk art, part of daily life. They all revolve in circles and can take on different meanings throughout time.
When asked about what collection to visit in Colombia, Gloria immediately points to greenhouses! Colombia has 10% of the earth´s biodiversity. And what is a favorite textile? the sisal bag used to pack coffee beans for export. “It is simple or complex, warp and weft are honest, it is biodegradable, it provides jobs and has multiple uses apart from being beautiful.”
The table is the center piece of her house, there she works, entertains, and it is the epicenter of many collections and the background of new projects and adventures.