Tihana Mikša

Interview with Tihana Mikša

Could you please tell us more about your art and design background? What made you become an artist/designer? Have you always wanted to be a designer?

I was always creative and good at drawing, during elementary school. There were drawings on the walls of my apartment. At the age of 14 I made my first dress, from a blanket, which was blue, with some printed figures and buttons. I also did sculpting and made dolls and figures. My mother was very creative, she knitted on a knitting machine, did embroidery, sewed, made macrame and so on. In addition, I attended ballet school at the same time and was involved in art and theater.

Can you tell us more about your company / design studio?

"Tihana Mikša took a master’s degree in the postgraduate course of textile and fashion design, textile design module, from the Faculty of Textile Technology, University of Zagreb. She became a member of ULUPUH (Croatian Association of Artists of Applied Arts) in 1997, of HZSU (Croatian Freelance Artists Association) in 2001 and of HDD (Croatian Designers Association) in 2011. Since 1994 she has been continuously engaged in fashion design. Since 1997 she has also been into illustration. She has taken part in 11 fashion shows at home and abroad, 43 collective shows and had five solo exhibitions at home and abroad. She designs costumes for films and theatrical productions, and collaborates in making toys and puppets. She does illustrations for Croatian publishers, and from time to time devises and runs workshops for children and adults. She is occupied with the hand making of small batches of and one-off clothes, and with the exploration of experimental fashion and textile art. She has been an instructor at the Faculty of Textile Technology, University of Zagreb for eight years. Tihana has won three prizes for her work."

When judging a design as good or bad, which aspects do you consider first?

Mostly, a lot of effort has been put in, but it's not a rule. I mean, I like to see completion with respect to the topic.

How do you think the "design field" is evolving? What is the future of design?

Interesting things are happening in 3D, biotextiles, recycling, sustainable design...

When was your last exhibition and where was it? And when do you want to hold your next exhibition?

Before Covid. 2019 in Zagreb. The project was called Mad as a Hatter. I was researching felt, i.e. caps and hats.

Where does the design inspiration for your works come from? How do you feed your creativity? What are your sources of inspirations?

Everywhere, it can be a color, an image, a text, a feeling... Sources are observing and listening to oneself, or reacting to something...

How would you describe your design style? What made you explore more this style and what are the main characteristics of your style? What's your approach to design?

It could be organic, as well as futuristic. Contrasts always work best. The approach is always to gather ideas, information, colors, textures...then clean up.

Where do you live? Do you feel the cultural heritage of your country affects your designs? What are the pros and cons during designing as a result of living in your country?

I live between Zagreb, Croatia, and Austria. I used heritage in my creations.

How do you work with companies?

I don't understand the question. I work mostly for myself. Or for theaters or companies to make costumes for them.

From your perspective, what would you say are some positives and negatives of being a designer?

The positive is the wonderful freedom and joy of creation, and the negative is that it can be very exhausting.

Do you work as a team, or do you develop your designs yourself?

Sometimes I work in a team, depending on the project. But mostly alone.