As Georgian Fashion Week’s profile rises on an international scale, Keti Chkhikvadze’s fluid and floral creations are paving her way to worldwide success.

Following the huge commercial success of Georgian export David Koma, a new Georgian player has emerged on the international scene: Meet Keti Chkhikvadze. A busy mother of two, Chkhikvadze, 33, was educated in Georgia’s capital at the Tbilisi State Academy of Arts, and sees her success as a product of her 2010 catwalk show presented at Georgia Fashion Week. “It was due to the Fashion Week in 2010 that I got an offer from TRANOI to open a showroom in Paris,” says Chkhikvadze, who will be showing her autumn/winter 2012 collection during Paris Fashion Week at the TRANOI exhibition on Avenue Montaigne. “As a result, I received clothing orders from clients from many countries including Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Italy.”

Afro-Eurasia’s “Silk Road,” an ancient trading network exporting silk and jewels has been reopened in Georgia. Under the leadership of President Mikheil Saakashvili, the independent state is seeing greater upward mobility and economic progress after more than a decade of civil strife. Recognizing Georgia’s market potential in the area of fashion, Maka Saakashvili, wife of Georgia’s president, is leading a textiles revolution. A member of the official Fashion Week committee, Mrs. Saakashvili hopes to establish a sustainable fashion platform for the region by attracting international press and buyers to the event. Since the establishment of Georgian Fashion Week in 2010, the event has hosted over 70 runway shows featuring 43 designers from various countries from Caucasus and Europe. Chkhikvadze describes Mrs. Saakashvili as “a close friend and supporter” and commends her efforts. Chkhikvadze tells Q+A UK, “It was due to her contacts that Mrs. Saakashvili was able to attract sponsors and funding for the event for the past three seasons.” Championing the aim of the platform, Chkhikvadze believes that “the participation of international media and fashion experts puts Georgian fashion in the spotlight of international players.”

Chkhikvadze’s design aesthetic “pays tribute to the female form.” The fluid and almost ethereal lines in her Spring/Summer 12 (SS 12) collection reflect her belief in the “flexibility hidden in a female silhouette.” Rippling lengths of fabric and extended hemlines elongate the body. In a bid to differentiate her SS 12 from her previous collections, Chkhikvadze explains that she used “fabrics of different colours and styles.” Her collection featured neutral nautical stripes, militaristic metallic buttons, sporty elasticised waists, fetishistic belts and Scottish tartans. Halter neck dresses were created using different coloured vertical panels. However, Chkhikvadze explains to Q+A UK that her use of patchwork does not reflect the DIY aesthetic of Georgia, “although Georgia has long-standing traditions and characteristics such as the costumes of the Georgian National Ballet dancers and theatre costumes, my SS 12 collection does not bear ethnic features.”

Chkhikvadze’s creation of high end investment pieces reflects the goals of Georgia Fashion Week to foster a sustainable fashion platform. “Timeless pieces may be more costly, but I do believe they are worth investing in whenever possible as fast fashion comes and goes too rapidly,” says Chkhikvadze, who prefers to incorporate luxe materials such as fur into her designs. “Although fur can be a controversial element, it still adds style and a personal touch to the collection.”

From a postmodernist perspective, Chkhikvadze believes that contemporary fashion recontextualizes past trends. With Rick Owens, Christian Dior and Prada as her favourite designers, it’s no wonder her designs “come under the influence of the past by finding inspiration from it.” Chkhikvadze’s use of velvet puffa jackets and oversized blazers were a tribute to Owens’s male silhouette. Her recent fur creations paralleled the 70’s glamour of Dior’s AW 11 collection, while her floral fabric embellishments reflect the playfulness of Prada. “Rose embellishments have become quite a signature of my recent collections. I do enjoy recreating and replicating them on some of the models. Sometimes my clothes become easily identified due to such embellishments,” says Chkhikvadze.

Designing the interiors of her most treasured hangout, The Bed Lounge in Tbilisi, and working on her AW 12 presentation for TRANOI’S Paris showrooms in March, Chkhikvadze hopes her “circle of clients will further increase in the future.” Boasting a ready-to-wear, wedding dress and shoe collection, Chkhikvadze’s future, like Georgia’s, looks bright. As a country on the Silk Road to recovery, Chkhikvadze is fast becoming Georgia’s most treasured export.