Swimwear is quite different from fashion. Swimwear like lingerie, are costumes we wear for a specific event.
Lingerie is for the bedroom and all that one imagines and swimwear is made for the sport of swimming, but also as the most provocative clothing that is worn outside of the house.
Women are judged by their looks, face and body, and the swimsuit is the costume that is worn for that. Women exercise and spend a great effort to improve their form. A walk down the beach becomes a real life show not of fashion but of displaying the female form perhaps to attract men and compete with other women.
Swimwear is something a woman buys with great care.
My job as a swimwear designer is to think about the swimsuit design as sculpture, 360 degrees of it, to enhance and compliment the body. Most important is for me to create a fit that feels good on but makes her look the best she can.
As a designer who works to empower women I ask myself, am I not feeding into the stereotype of women as objects? I would say that may be true since some women who wear swimwear present themselves as objects, but for those who have a great sense of self, and work at fitness and health, they present themselves as empowered and proud
