Teddy Iulian

WHEN I STARTED THINKING ABOUT WHAT MY FIRST EVER DROP WOULD BE, THE ONLY THING I KNEW IS THAT I WANTED IT TO BE MEANINGFUL. SO, I TURNED TO A TOPIC WHICH I FELT STRONGLY FOR: ROMANIA. JUST A FEW WEEKS BEFORE I STARTED DESIGNING THESE PIECES, THE PRESIDENTIAL ELECTIONS IN ROMANIA WERE RECALLED DUE TO RUSSIAN INTERFERENCE IN THE EARLY ROUNDS. SO, TO ILLUSTRATE RUSSIA’S CORRUPTING INFLUENCE ON ROMANIA AND ITS CULTURE DATING BACK TO THE CEAUSESCU DICTATORSHIP WHICH MY MOM WAS BROUGHT UP IN, I CHOSE A ROMANIAN WOMAN WHOSE FACE IS COVERED IN CYRILLIC TEXT AND WITH TEARS COMING FROM HER EYES.

ROMANIA IS ONE OF THE RARE COUNTRIES IN EASTERN EUROPE WHO FULLY USES THE LATIN ALPHABET. NOTE: I WANTED EVERY GARMENT TO LOOK HOW A WESTSIDE GUNN SONG SOUNDED.

LOOKING BACK ON THIS DROP, THERE ARE MANY THINGS I WOULD HAVE DONE DIFFERENTLY. I WOULD HAVE PROBABLY NOT CHOSE THIS DESIGN, ALTHOUGH THE IDEA I STAND BY MORE THAN EVER. I AM GLAD TO HAVE SHED SOME LIGHT ON THESE ISSUES WHICH NO MEDIA EVER COVERS. I LEARNT A LOT THANKS TO MY FIRST DROP. FOR EXAMPLE, I ORDERED EVERY SIZE ONE SIZE TOO SMALL FROM THE MANUFACTURER. I PAY A LOT OF ATTENTION TO THE SIZING OF MY PIECES. THIS DROP ALSO TAUGHT ME A LOT ABOUT BUILDING A COMMUNITY.

FOR THE SECOND AND FINAL WZHPARIS DROP, I ONLY HAD ONE THING IN MIND: REPRESENTING MY CITY.

I THINK PARIS IS THE GREATEST CITY IN THE WORLD.

WHILE THE CAMPAIGN FOR THE FIRST DROP WAS GRIM, AND MONOTONE, I WANTED COLOR TO PLAY A BIG PART IN SHOWING OFF MY CITY FOR THIS DROP. WHILE THE PALE PINK IS OBVIOUSLY THE CENTER OF ATTENTION, I WANTED THE REST OF A PICTURE’S COLOR PALETTE TO BE THE COLORS OF MY CITY.

THE CAMPAIGN FOR THIS DROP BECAME INTERNATIONAL WHEN I BROUGHT SOME PIECES TO NEW YORK AFTER WINNING A SCHOLARSHIP TO TRAVEL OVERSEAS AND WORK THERE (I TALK MORE ABOUT THIS ON THE MUSIC PAGE).