Given his formative experience with a traditional dressmaking background, Pador鈥檚 work as an educator places a strong emphasis on technical application as the foundation upon which to establish a label and envision a brand. Eschewing an overly conceptual or trend-based understanding of couture, Pador stresses to his students the importance of situating their compositions in craft, and emphasizes the significance of Detroit鈥檚 history as a mecca of quality manufacturing.
Pador鈥檚 recognition of the city鈥檚 potential as a site for ateliers drove his emphasis to base himself in Detroit as much as the city鈥檚 rich artistic and musical history鈥攃ultural exports that strongly influenced his upbringing in Germany. Following teaching positions in Germany, Belgium, India and the U.S.鈥攎ost recently, at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago鈥擯ador has recognized an innate affinity to Detroit in himself, and expects to make the city his home base for years to come.
Professional Experience
A native of Germany, Pador鈥檚 career in fashion began with a focus on the craft of dressmaking, gaining technical training through his experiences at Brigitte Kehrer and Holzenbecher Fashion Schools in Stuttgart. In 2012, Pador graduated with a Master鈥檚 degree in fashion design from the Royal Academy of Fine Arts in Antwerp, Belgium鈥攁 program that cemented itself in the 1980s as one of the formative localities for cutting-edge design. Following in the footsteps of the Academy鈥檚 distinguished alumni, Pador has worked for numerous high fashion houses in Antwerp, Paris, New York and Milan. Under his company 鈥濭HOST鈥� he assisted on design concepts for clients such as Marc Jacobs and Dries Van Noten.