Breakdown of ¿Conoces al diseñador de la colección?
de
from / of
al
to the
conocer
to know (people, places)
la
the (feminine)
Questions & Answers about ¿Conoces al diseñador de la colección?
Why is conoces used here instead of sabes for "do you know"?
Where does the word al come from before diseñador?
Al is a mandatory combination of the preposition a and the masculine word for "the", el. We need the a here because of the "personal a" rule: whenever the direct object of a verb is a specific person (like the designer), you must put an a in front of it. A + el always shrinks into al.
Could I just say ¿Conoces el diseñador? without the a?
No, that would sound incorrect in Spanish. Because "the designer" is a human being receiving the action of the verb, the personal a is absolutely required. Leaving it out is a very common trap for English speakers!
How would this sentence change if the designer were a woman?