Discussing Koketit with Shira Barzilay
Kotetit is the face and name of a brand owned by Shira Barzilay. Ms Barzilay is an arts enthusiast designer from Israel who uses primitive and abstract designs to express herself.
Uyolo: Koketit is a fashionable girl isn’t she? What story does she tell?
Shira Barzilay: I created a drawing figure years ago, and named her Koketit – because she had become a frequent a visitor on my doodle pages. This figure, like myself, has evolved and changed throughout the years, and has been escorting me throughout all of my creative adventures.
Through her I was able to express my love for fashion, and slowly transition into the art world, through a much more expressive outlook, rather than figurative.
My creative career has led me to many different paths, from being a blogger to producing products, collaborating with brands and creating fine art. Having Koketit has been my anchor and the root to which I find myself coming back to, at each turn.
Uyolo: Your designs are literally a mood; there’s a lot of comments online speculating that Picasso has influenced you a lot is that true?
Shira Barzilay: Truth be told, I never studied Picasso's art and I never used his art as my inspiration. I may have been exposed to his work, among other artists such as Miro, Matisse, and others – and have subconsciously sponged up inspiration. This last month I visited Barcelona and paid a visit to the Picasso museum. This was a truly inspiring experience. Now, I am his biggest fan. I don’t mind being compared to him because I feel like I am continuing his legacy in a way – bringing modernity to this style. It's not a style, it’s a lifestyle. It becomes all-encompassing – the simplicity, the one lines – the fluidity and abstraction – it makes you want to drop the unnecessary and focus on your point of view – your intuition – it brings you closer to yourself. Some artists take too much inspiration from other artists and that's wrong – I have experienced this via Instagram – seeing feeds that emulate my type of art almost exactly. You can tell when someone is being in-authentic. It totally shows.
Uyolo: What did you first draw koketit on? A shoe? A bag? A cup? How did you know it was it?
Shira Barzilay: I have been collaborating with brands on products and campaigns for years. One of my first collabs were with the local H&M – where KOKETIT was the face of the conscious denim collection. It was truly exciting. Since then I've done shoe collabs with BenSimon shoes, plates, t-shirts, passport holders, temporary tattoos – soda stream bottles, childrenswear, you name it. I love to collaborate with.
Uyolo: What do you hope to bring to the people aspiring to become designers?
Shira Barzilay: Find your true voice and realize that the search is never-ending. It's not the destination, it’s the journey. Find the passion, the reason and the thing that makes your heart and soul yearn and crave – and practice your art religiously everyday. Instagram is a great tool for practice.
Uyolo: Tell us a little about your current projects..
Shira Barzilay: Right now I'm a working on multiple projects from around the world.
I'm designing a men's watch, a rug, a sweater, a fragrance, and a t-shirt line. I'm also working on my live performance and animation at the same time and selling my art -prints on my website as well as on anthropolgie.com
Uyolo: Would you be open to collaborate with other designers and creatives around the world; how would they be able to reach you?
Shira Barzilay: Thanks to Instagram, I get approached by brands from the around the world to collaborate on different projects. I am open to all collabs pending on whether they are right for me and my brand.
Follow on Instagram: @koketit
Shop Koketit: https://www.koketit.com/
