Cristian Samfira is a complete artist, addressing over the years various types of art: painting, photography, sculpture, scenography and more recently jewellery design. However the one art that made him follow the curricula of the Visual Arts Academy “Ioan Andreescu” was the fashion design.
He started his career, in 1997, as an eyewear designer while still being a student. After graduation, in 1999, he became a designer for one of the most prestigious fashion houses in Romania at that time. In parallel he was the fashion stylist for the Romanian editions of Cosmopolitan and FHM magazines.
In 2003, Samfira started to develop his own brand, Cristian Samfira, exhibiting his creations in exclusive boutiques. Cristian Samfira become an independent brand and a stand alone design studio in 2004.
Over the past 10 years, Cristian Samfira brand consolidated its image and style and gained increasing popularity among women with no prejudices. The bearers of the brand see clothes, rather than an accessory, a discrete “business card” that introduces them as an elevated, elegant and cultivated person. It addresses women that have the courage to change and the ability to adapt to new situations, women that have a story to tell and are not afraid of speaking loud about it. The clothes are worn by self confident women that carry themselves tall and proud and choose their clothes based on their needs and desires and not to please others.
His collections are showcased in individual, local and international fashion events and won him important awards. Cristian also designs costumes for theatre and television productions, both locally and abroad. His creations can be seen in plays at Odeon or Nottara theatres in Bucharest or Molière theatre in Paris.
Passionate about arts in general, and painting in particular, Cristian doesn’t hesitate to interlock his various artistic interests into one creation. He hand paints some of the items giving its work new dimensions and its holder a defined attitude. His work is characterized by colour richness, composition and fluency. He likes to alternates between styles, contrasts, fabrics, ideas and visions. Frequently the items of his collections are a mix of clear and vibration, clean surfaces and cuts or adornments. He has a specific interest in traditional costumes and often in his work he reinterprets, updates and reinvents old folk elements or techniques.
His designing vision lies somewhere between couture and prêt-à-porter — a couture a porter — that fit the needs of dressing for public and private occasions.
The result, his creations are not necessarily following a seasonal trend but rather have a timeless character, addressing people with a taste for art, uniqueness and self identity rather than a pure commercial interest. Inclining more towards haute couture, where art meets fashion, his attention goes especially to fabrics, fine details and finishing touches.
Cristian Samfira brand caters mainly to custom made orders and the clothes are in vast majority unique or in very limited editions. Besides managing his own fashion studio, Cristian Samfira works as well with specialized TV shows, fashion and lifestyle magazine and he is a committed supporter of charity causes such as, Save the Children or UNICEF.