The LA Fashion 2014

LA DESIGNERS
Bex Taylor Klaus is far from your typical upand-coming
actress. She quickly developed a
cult fanbase after viewers were str uck by her
gender-bending character, Bullet, on Netflix’s
revived season of AMC’s The Killing. Catch
her on the upcoming season of Arrow, as
streetwise DC sidekick, “Sin.”
master class
Former FIDM student, Alejandro Ortega takes on the
fashion world...in his own way
BY SARA BERKES
Q Describe what you do in one
sentence.
I do moral ambiguity on a professional scale.
Q Where are you from?
Atlanta, GA
Q Where are you going?
Chasing the shadows.
Q What drives you there?
To be an actor is to visit the dark places others
strive to stay away from. I want to visit those
dark places. I always find the most interesting
spots of light there.
Q If you were to explain your belief
or theory of life to a 5 year old,
what would you say?
Even when life sucks, there is magic
everywhere. You just have to remember to look
up.
Q What’s your guilty pleasure? What
form does it take? (ex: Baking,
reading teenage thriller novels, etc)
I have this theory that if you feel any guilt,
it’s not a true pleasure. That being said, I do
have a deep love for Disney princesses and
honestly cannot get enough of the old cartoon
movies!
Former FIDM student Alejandro Ortega
loves fashion. Growing up in Morelia,
Mexico, Alejandro’s mother was a tailor,
fashion designer, and founder of a fashion
institute, and it was at twelve years old, after seeing
his mother’s first fashion show, that Alejandro realized
fashion was his calling.
Inspired by fashion greats such as Cristobal
Balenciaga, Yves Saint Laurent, and Christian Dior,
whom he describes as “innovators, creators, and masters
in the world of fashion,” Alejandro sees being
a fashion designer as “like being an actor. I can be
anyone when it comes to creating fashion. You are
always casting for new roles.”
Graduating from FIDM’s Fashion Design program
PHOTOGRAPHED in 2011, Alejandro BYreceived a full scholarship
KELLY WEBB
to present his Debut show in 2012. His show was
such a success that he was offered a second full
scholarship to study haute couture at the prestigious
Koefia Institute in Rome. Along with studying
fashion in school, Alejandro has had plenty of
hands-on work in the industry. As associate designer
at Bocanegra, Alejandro had the opportunity to dress
celebrities such as Eva Longoria, Reese Witherspoon,
and Mila Kunis. He has also worked for Louis
Verdad, David Salom, Akiko, Kevin Hall, Elisabetta
Rogiani, and French-American company, Jomsy Inc.
As for where he gets his own design inspiration,
Alejandro notes that it can come “from anything,
whatever catches my attention. It can be on the
street, at a restaurant, while driving… anything with
color, shape, and texture. But it has to be unique,”
he says. “I am not a classic guy, I always like to be
different.”
Like the fashion greats that have come before
him, Alejandro has big dreams for his future in the
industry. “They had a dream, and now their houses
have transformed into empires. I would like to be
the next one, I would like to have my own empire…
and I will!”
PHOTOGRAPHER: NINO VIA - NINOVIA.COM • MODEL: TIFFANY MAYBEE - ICE GENETICS
MODEL: LAUREN SEELY MAKE-UP: JENNY KARL - JENNY KARL HAIR & MAKE UP AGENCY
SHOT ON LOCATION FIDM
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LA FASHION SPRING 2014 thelosangelesfashion.com