Demna Gvasalia, the current creative director of Balenciaga, was presented with the prestigious Medal of Honour by the President of Georgia Salome Zourabichvili. The designer was awarded the distinction “for his contribution to the popularisation of Georgia abroad,” according to a local news report.
The President took to Twitter to share the news and offer congratulations to the designer, writing “Demna, it is a great honor to give you the Medal of Honor…today is a commemoration of the Fall of Sokhumi, a day of mourning for Georgia, but giving you this award means that somewhere, we’ve won.”
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Aside from crafting his own collections, the creative director has been working closely with both Kim Kardashian and Kanye West recently. Creating Kim’s iconic all-black ensemble for the Met and appearing alongside her in an apparent caricature of Kanye, Gvasalia also designed the DONDA merch. Sold at the (numerous) listening events for the album, the merch garnered controversy for it’s expensive price tag and relatively plain design. However, it still broke the record for the highest-grossing tour merch, totalling $7 million USD in revenue.
Earlier this year, Gvasalia unveiled his first Balenciaga couture collection, marking the first time the House has shown couture since the closure of the atelier in 1968. He also took part in the ‘Gucciaga’ hack in April, in which Balenciaga ‘logo-hacked’ Gucci in order to celebrate their centenary year.
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