Though he’s known for being a painter and sculptor, illustrious contemporary artist Domingo Zapata recently made a huge splash in the fashion world with his first “Art to Wear” collection last week. We were lucky enough to catch up with him after his NYFW debut and hear all about his experience as an emerging fashion designer. Find out what challenges Zapata faced in combining the realms of art and fashion, who’s on his star-studded list of mentors and what’s next on his agenda.

 

AZ: Hometown?

DZ: Palma de Mallorca, Spain.

 

AZ: Zodiac sign?

DZ: Capricorn.

 

AZ: Who do you look up to in the fashion industry?

DZ: Tom Ford and Oscar de la Renta.

 

Photo// Instagram (@domingozapata)

 

AZ: Did anyone mentor you on your journey into fashion?

DZ: Stacey Bendet, Malini Murjani and Steve Madden have all helped me so much to understand and appreciate fashion.

 

AZ: What is the toughest part about producing and executing a fashion show?

DZ: Putting together a good team of people! I was lucky enough to find the right team and that made it so much easier.

 

AZ: We loved how the show was broken up into parts—what was the reasoning behind this?

DZ: I wanted to give the audience a break to digest and enjoy the different themes of the collection.

 

Photo// Stephen Lovekin for WWD

 

AZ: What are your thoughts on the intersection between fashion and art?

DZ: It’s been happening forever! I believe that there is a conversation between art and fashion that makes so much sense given the climate we find ourselves in and lends itself to creating unique art to wear.

 

AZ: Does your artwork influence the fashion, or does fashion influence your artwork?

DZ: I believe both.

 

AZ: Between your book and other projects, it seems like you are juggling a lot. How do you balance it all?

DZ: Working hard and staying focused is vital, but dreaming and creating help.

 

Photo// Stephen Lovekin for WWD

 

AZ: Advice to aspiring artists and fashion designers?

DZ: Never give up and keep expressing yourself and beautiful things will happen.

 

AZ: Dream collaboration?

DZ: Tom Ford.

 

AZ: What do you have coming up next?

DZ: My next art show which will be in Paris in May.

 

AZ: How can we follow you?

DZ: My Instagram is @domingozapata and my website is www.dzapata.com.

 

Photo// Instagram (@domingozapata)