Gosha Rubchinskiy and his gang of Muscovite misfits has called the attention of the art and fashion world since January 2017 after his autumn / winter menswear collaboration with Adidas in Kaliningrad. The Russian enclave nestled on the Baltic coast between Poland and Lithuania, and known as “a small piece of Russia in the middle of Europe”.  Since 2014, Gosha has been seen as one of the most influential mens wear designers, and this was the first time since 2009 where he had a show in his mother country.

The sports inspired fashion was inspired by the lack of sports style in the Soviet Union while Gosha was growing up. In his youth he recalled having to custom make shoes that resembled Adidas trainers. His concept and vision for this collection is about bringing people together. He achieved this with touches of football inspired pieces, inviting guests to leave Paris to view the collection in a historically war-torn backdrop, right down to his model casting.

With Gosha, behind every moment is a purpose. His cast of models and friends are young Russian artists, skaters and models with the same like minded ideologies about Russia. Gosha’s crew worship and truly connect with his message. "No man or woman has as deep and huge an influence on me as Gosha. Everything he says to me, I understand that this is how it needs to be," gushes Artem Nanushyan, an artist and musician who helped style at the Kaliningrad show.

These young kids aren't hanging around Gosha for the limelight that come with fashion, but because each of them can connect with the Russian awareness he promotes. From sixteen year olds to mid twenty somethings, this group wants to redefine how the western media has been portraying Russia. Some of his gang are achieving this through art, photography, or simply by sharing their experiences by growing up in a politically struggling country.

Artem shares “At the end of it in the 90s, we thought it was all bad - the communism, the leaders, the ideology - but we really forget what was good about it. It was a beautiful culture, a beautiful people, a beautiful thing. We should try to rethink it, try to recognize it from a new angle.”

Gosha’s crew and cast is carefully selected. A pretty face is no longer the only preresquite to nail the job. His team is filled with Slavic features, and fuelled by a like mindedness in his mission statements. "If I feel something special I choose the person. It's not about having beauty. You need to have something else to be part of my show.”