We had the good fortune of connecting with Carla Cid de Diego and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Carla, maybe we can start at the very start – the idea – how did you come up with the idea for your business?
I grew up in the world of Art. My father was a very well known sculptor from Spain and my mother is a publicist who, together with my father, created a Set design company in Spain and another one in the USA where they produced sets for theatre, opera, ballet, TV, movies, theme parks, events, etc, winning multiple awards all over the world. So I grew up immersed in that world of creativity and color, where everything was possible. In high school (I attended Design & Architecture Senior High) in Miami, I fell in love with the Fashion world and pursued my professional career at the Fashion Institute of Technology in NYC.
My dream was to have my own brand, and after working for a few years in the fashion industry both in the USA and Europe, I was ready to do take the chance and go for my dream.

That’s when I met my partner in crime, Jonathan, who shared the same passion for Art & Design, and we decided to embark on the adventure together. We opened my fashion brand “Carla Cid de Diego, Madrid”, where, in collaboration with my father, Fernando Cid de Diego, we began to fuse Sculptures and Fashion in each design, creating a unique line of Sculpture Bags, made by hand out of metal and then plated in precious metals.

Having fused these 2 worlds into a single brand and launching it in Miami Beach during Art Basel 2015, we realized that we had a very unique product that didn’t really fit into a regular Art Gallery setting nor a regular clothing store since none of those really sold the mix of Art & Fashion, so we decided to create our own niche in order to be able to offer it all at the same time.

We opened our own pop up showroom in the famous island of Ibiza, Spain, in 2016, where we exhibited and sold our fashion collection, my father’s sculptures and a large collection of Art and Fashion from international artists and designers who were looking for a unique niche to sell their work from. That’s when “Zenith Art & Fashion” was born.

At Zenith Art & Fashion, we Unite Cultures through the Fusion of the Arts, representing artists and designers from all around the world, creating exhibitions, shows, events, and marketing campaigns for all of them in order to push their brands and names into the National and International markets, as well as offering a selection of unique works to Art collectors and fashion enthusiasts that they can’t find in regular stores around the world.

After Ibiza, we brought our pop up showroom to Miami during Art Basel 2016, where we decided to set our base. Today, Zenith Art & Fashion creates events, pop up exhibitions, fashion shows and presentations in different cities, always offering unique Art and Fashion by creatives from all around the world. We work with Luxury Hotels, restaurants, other galleries, private buildings, art fairs, always bringing the fusion of all the arts, including Sculpture, Painting, Photography, Fashion, Theatre, Ballet, Music and many more. And in many cases, using our creative events and projects to help non-profit organizations raise funds through the Arts.

So our idea came from our own need as Artists & Designers to sell and promote our creations. We filled in the gap that was missing in the market for ourselves and for others.

Can you give our readers an introduction to your business? Maybe you can share a bit about what you do and what sets you apart from others?
My partner Jonathan Fakinos and I started our own Fashion Brand, Carla Cid de Diego Madrid, a luxury Couture line composed of Handmade corsets and a unique collection of Sculpture Bags, handmade in collaboration with my father, Sculptor Fernando Cid de Diego.

Due to the fact that we started collaborating with my father, and joining Sculpture with Fashion, Jonathan and I created the Artistic Platform Zenith Art & Fashion, where we represent Artists, Fashion Designers, Photographers, Jewelry Designers, and more, and we help them push their names and brands into the National and International markets.

Our slogan is that “We Unite Cultures through the Fusion of the Arts”.

We act as their Artistic marketing Agency, we create shows, exhibitions and presentations, in order to push for sales and promotion for all the artists. We produce special projects and unique events where we join all the Arts: Fine Arts, Fashion, Music, Dance, Theatre, Acrobatics, etc. In these events, we also often collaborate with many non-profit organizations and missions in order to help those in need through the Arts.

Zenith Art & Fashion is based out of South Florida and we work with artists from all over the world.

We have always been concerned about our environment and the people within it, so we have always looked at how we can help others. Although we have always worked with charities and foundations in different events, because we wanted to do more, we began to design and develop several large-scale projects to benefit charities and non-profit organizations, we developed a new company and platform, called Art & Hope.

Art & Hope is a creative organization that partners with the Arts in order to bring Hope to people in need, producing unique special projects to raise funds for different humanitarian causes. For the first project ever, Art & Hope, together with Global Gift Foundation has partnered with Guiness-World-Record-Artist Sacha Jafri, Miami based Ikonick Gallery and French Champagne chateaux Hatt et Söner to create the project: Sacha Jafri “The Power of the Reconnected World, inspired by Ikonick”.

This project follows Sacha Jafri’s Humanitarian journey, raising funds to help the poorest children in the world, through Galas, Events and Auctions in different cities such as Miami, Marbella, Dubai, Paris, London, Tokyo and many more.

Art & Hope is already planning more projects together with different non-profit organizations and groups such as “Show me your World Foundation” in Miami, “The Miami City Ballet”, “El Cielo Foundation” and several others.

Also, we are preparing for Miami Art Week, better known as Art Basel Miami, where we will be participating once again at Red Dot Miami with Zenith Art & Fashion, presenting the creations of many National and International artists in one of the central booths of the fair.

During the week, we will also be organizing several private events and exhibitions in different hotels and buildings such as the 1000 Museum Condos, The Yve Hotel, Via Emilia Restaurant, Ikonick Gallery and several others.

Art is always exciting for me, but to be able to do what you love while also helping others is amazing. I believe this is what makes us so unique, because we not only do our job, we use all our tools, opportunities and hard work in order to also bring hope to those in need.

We do things differently, we appreciate the unique.

We don’t “follow the rules”, we “MAKE OUR OWN RULES” , and when we do what is right for everyone, great things happen.

If it were easy, everyone would do it! No, it’s definitely not easy at all, it’s very challenging and frustrating many times, but perseverance is the key to success, so when you have a goal and you work hard for it, anything is possible. It’s not about sitting around hoping for “Luck” to strike, it’s about creating the circumstances around you for things to happen, if you’re missing something, find the tools you need to use in order to reach that goal. Don’t give up, learn from your mistakes and instead of focusing on what you don’t have or can’t do, find your strengths in order to make it happen.

Inside this crazy world of injustice, blame and greed, I believe we should focus on the beauties we have around us, the positives, what unites us as humans instead of what divides us. Art is a Universal language, it unites people despite their race, social status, language, age, culture, religions, beliefs…Art is the beauty that speaks all languages and all colors. And through this language, we aim to bring positive things to the world, helping as many people as we can along the way.

– Carla Cid de Diego, Madrid: “We are Art, we are Fashion, we are Couture”
– Zenith Art & Fashion: “Uniting Cultures through the Fusion of the Arts”
– Art & Hope: “Bringing Hope to people in need through the world of Art”.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
South Florida is a wonderful place to visit, full of unique spots and amazing things to see. Every time my friends or family come to visit, there are several places I never let them miss:

– Downtown Miami – Brickell area: Taking a ride on the metro mover and walking down the streets of Brickell. Bayside Marketplace is always a fun place to visit and maybe taking a ride in one of the tour boats to see the city from the water.

– Kayak trip down the Miami River, Biscayne Bay and over to Virginia Key. For the most adventurers, go spend a day Kayaking at Oleta River State Park.

– Miami Beach: From walking the streets of South Beach – Ocean Drive, South Point, Washington Avenue, having lunch in one of the terraces of Lincoln Road – to taking a ride through Millionaire’s Row, Alton Road, all the way up to Bal Harbor.

– Of course visit Wynwood – All the streets to see the galleries, stores, small cafes and food trucks. Visiti the Wynwood Walls and the Graffiti Museum.

– The Design District – Visit all the designer’s stores and eat at one of the amazing little restaurants around there.

– If their visit coincides with a full moon, go to the Full Moon/Drum Circle on 82nd and Collins on the Beach, to experience the fun and beauty of so many drummers playing together, dancing in the moonlight by the water and meeting wonderful people from all over the world.

– Take a day trip to visit Billy Swamp Safari, to experience the Everglades, with their Boogie rides, air boat rides and maybe even get a chance to touch an alligator.

– For a long weekend – visit Key West – drive down from Miami, enjoying the beautiful road, stopping to eat at any of the keys in between and taste their crab cakes and key lime pie!

– Of course, one of my favorite things to do is to go to Disney World! 3-4 days is always an unforgettable experience of fun, thrills and never-ending adventure, being a child again

– If time allows, visit Fort Lauderdale – Las Olas – see the art galleries, the beach and wonderful restaurants around.

– Also, visit Hollywood Broadwalk and walk up and down the beach, eat at any of the cafes and restaurants and enjoy live music entertainment.

– Visit Palm Beach, don’t miss the Breaker’s Hotel and go have a drink somewhere in Clematis Street in West Palm Beach.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
Absolutely…I have to say MY FATHER…

The amazing, one and only Sculptor, Designer, Engineer, Inventor, Renaissance man, Fernando Cid de Diego, who we recently lost because of Covid-19…
He not only was my favorite artist in the entire world, he was my mentor, my Genius, my best friend, my idol, my everything, He taught me everything I know about the world of Art, he taught me to think outside of the box, he taught me that nothing is impossible as long as you know how to use your intellect and the right tools, he taught me that we are ALL ABLE TO MAKE IT HAPPEN as long as we put our mind to it work hard for it. He taught me that we should NEVER be afraid of learning, of failing or of making mistakes, because every mistake is a lesson learned and it can only make us stronger, it shapes us as humans and it makes us be better. And most of all, he taught me that life is a gift and that we should all focus on doing what we LOVE, because when we do that, we won’t ever have to work a day in our life.

He LOVED his work, for him, waking up in the morning to work on his Art, on his designs, was such a pleasure that he never liked to feel tired or have to even stop to eat or rest, because he felt he was losing time from doing what he really loved… He taught me that Art is something that makes us connect with people no matter where they are from or how far, even if they are not in this world anymore… 
He always gave me everything he had, is life, his wisdom, his energy, his LOVE, and ALL his Legacy. He gave me his name, and his name has opened incredible doors for me in the Art World… People know him and my mother, Silvia, who has always been his other half (in every sense of the word, personally and professionally) for 50 years, as “The Geniuses”, and because I have their name, Cid de Diego, everyone expects me to be just like them, and even though I’m not (I wish I was), I try every single day to be close to their level.

These are very big shoes to fill.

Website: www.zenithartandfashion.com

Instagram: @zenithartandfashion @carlaciddediego_official

Linkedin: Zenith Art & Fashion

Facebook: Zenith – Art & Fashion

Image Credits
Pablo Barrera Photography

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