Westword July 29, 2010 : Page 21
Mondo Guerra continued from page 18 WW: Why did you apply to be on Project Runway, and what was the application process like? MG: The application process for Project Runwaywas intense. Portfolio, home video, page after page of personal questions. I applied for Project Runway to challenge myself. Itwas a goal I had to accomplish. When I got the call that I made the cut, I went through every emotion possible, a roller coaster of tears, laughing. I was in shock. WW: What family do you have InDenver? Are you close with them? MG: All of my family lives here.Very close, major fiestas. WW: In 1999, you won a competition for Auraze Juniorwear and moved to New York to take a job with them, right? Tell me about that experience. MG: Itwas great. You know,out in New York there’s just so much culture.I think a lot of fashion, or fashion inspiration, comes from culture, or different cultures, and if you want to experience that kind of culture, New York is the place to be. You know, that would be where you’d go to have that experience. And there’s so much going on all the time. So it was great to have that experience, to sort of be able to be in the middle of everything. WW: But then a few years later, you came back to Denver. Why? MG: Well, I broke myhip. I slipped on some ice and I broke my right hip, and if I would have stayed in New York, they would haveput me in a home, you know, because I lived in a walk-up on the fifth fl oor. So I just decided to just come home and be with myfamily. And I actually ended up staying a lot longer than I planned. WW: So, having basically started your career in New York, how did being back in Denver compare? What were some differences, or some similarities? MG: Well, I think clothing is just an extension of who you are. You know, everybody comes from a different background, everybody has a different story. I guess for me, personally, I like to change it up; I’m kind of a chameleon. Some days you want to dress up and look pro-fessional; other days you just want to havefun. More often, I want to have fun. WW: That seems to be a theme in your design style, actually, which is pretty eclectic. Com-pared to the other contestants, or at least what little we’ve been able to see of them, your design sense is pretty out there.How did that play out on the show? MG: Well, even going into the show,I knew that I did have a different point of view from a lot of the people on it. I like to look to the past for inspiration, for, like,silhouettes, but I also really like looking at more modern stuff — textiles, prints — and keeping that just modern and fresh. But, you know, I do think everything should be wearable and functional. WW: There also seems to be a certain cheerfully sleazy aesthetic to your designs; one of your collections was called LoveMondoTrasho, for example. How did that come about? MG: Well, when I fi rst started cutting patterns, I was really into reconstruction. I went to a lot of thrift stores and bought clothes and looked at how they werelaid out fl at, like a flat pattern, and then put them back together and made new pieces out of them. So I just feel like I’m really into the idea of found objects as fashion. And as I’ve matured as a designer, I feel like I use that way of looking at things in a different way, like in myprints or mypatterns. So that’skind of how I stay true to me. WW: Did you fi nd your experience on the show changed how you design, or how you approach designing? MG: You know, my experience on the show showed me that I can design a lot faster than I thought I could, at least when I’m working in my own space. We all have time restrictions for each challenge and everything. But you know, you always want to break the rules as much as you can. You just don’t want to break them so much that you have to, you know,go home. WW: One criticism of your work on the show, at least in the casting call, was that the judges called it “over-designed.” Do you think you’ve reined it in at all? MG: You know, the thing about it is, you’re always going to be critiqued. You’re going to be critiqued by one person or the other. But beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and I actually responded to that by saying, I think there’s a customer for everything. You know, you might not be attracted to it; you might think that it’s over-thought, but there is going to be a customer that will really appreciate what you think it means. Sometimes in my life, I think, I like to just live by saying more is more. The Project Runway contestant takes to his tasks. WW: So in the end, in spite of whatever criticism or direction you might have got-ten on the show, you just kind of kept on doing whatever you wanted to do. MG: Yeah, you know,I feel like if you are Mondo Guerra at his Denver studio. good at what you do, you listen to criticism and you take it in, but you also have to digest it and take what you want to hear from it — but also to try not to be so stubborn. You know, I took the criticism and learned from it, and I feel like the whole competition was for the best, and I grew a lot as a designer. But, yeah, if you allow yourself to kind of do whatever everybody else is going to tell you to do, then I don’t feel like you will ever really fi nd your strengths. WW: Can you tell me a specifi c thing that you learned? MG:I learned that I’m appreciated for really being who I am and staying true to my strengths. You know, I’m one of the most colorful designers in the competition; I use different textiles, lots of texture. I think everything I did was wear-able and that it wasn’t overdone, and so I think they really appreciated the fact that I stayed true to myself, but also that I improved challenge by challenge. WW: Who’s the best-dressed person in Denver? MG: Oh, man, you know what, you’re going to ask me again? I’m going to say I am. WW: Good answer. MG: What am I supposed to say? You want me to lie? WW: What do you think of the fashion scene in Denver? Do you hang out with other designers here? MG: Denver has a strong emerging fashion scene with some amazing independent designers. I don’t really hang out with any other fashion designers. I surround myself with photographers, musicians, visual artists. WW: What do you hope to show the world about Denver on the show? MG: Denver gots something good: me. WW: What are you doing now, and will you be staying on in Denver for a while? MG: I’m working as a freelance designer, but I’m planning on moving to one of the coasts. I’m thinking L.A. since I’ve already done New York City. For more on Mondo Guerra, go to Show and Tell, our new arts and culture blog. Contact the author at jef.otte@westword.com. 21 westword.com | WORST-CASE SCENARIO | CONTENTS | LETTERS | ¡ASK A MEXICAN! | OFF LIMITS | CITY LIMITS | NIGHT+DAY | MOVIES | THEATER | ART | CAFE | BACKBEAT | WESTWORD JULY29-AUGUST4, 2010 COURTESY OF LIFETIME TV ANTHONY CAMERA
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