Men’s – Workwear. Yohji Yamamoto AW17

January 23, 2017January 23, 2017 | Design & Culture by Ed

Yohji Yamamoto wanted to recall that “basic aspect of the labor” – he referred to all the people in the background, who help him construct his exquisite garments. That’s a fact – real clothing can’t be made without human hands, you need to use your fingers to understand the texture; your body, to see how the piece looks on a living and breathing person. Having all that in mind, seeing Yamamoto’s menswear was a true experience. A man’s suit appeared in a number of different colours and fabrics, while elegant reversible coats, masculine vests and romantic capes were hand-painted with ‘working man’ slogans. There’s no fuss about Yohji’ collection – and that’s why I might adore them so much, always.

GmbH

January 4, 2017January 4, 2017 | Design & Culture by Ed

Who? Serhat Isik, Benjamin Alexander Huseby and their intriguing collaborators.

Where? Looking at the clothes, there’s only one guess – Berlin, of course.

What? According to the designers behind this off-beat label, “in German, GmbH means a company of financial limited liability, which is the German equivalent to ‘ltd.’ or ‘Inc.’ – the most common standard legal form of any German company. We didn’t really want to use our own names; as we don’t want the main focus to be on us. And it also reflects or design process. GmbH is so neutral it can mean anything and nothing at the same time.”

Why? GmbH origins from the German capital’s famous clubbing culture, but also, the diversity of this city. The clothes are not only modelled by the designers’ friends – Serhat and Benjamin are inspired by the way they dress, both for everyday and a night-out. What’s interesting, majority of the label’s one-of-a-kind products is made of deadstock materials. Over-sized jackets, PVC pants and technical fabric t-shirts are just a few of the essentials GmbH produces and sells.

No, you aren’t wrong – one of the models starring in GmbH’s new season look-book is Stefano Pilati.

Marine Serre

October 30, 2016October 30, 2016 | Design & Culture by Ed

Lately, Paris is the place where young talents emerge. The fashion industry has already been awestricken by the league of such designers like Simon Porte Jacquemus, Glenn Martens and Demna Gvasalia. But it’s all about boys… and it’s the high time for ladies – and here we’re with Marine Serre, who kicked off her Paris Fashion Week at The Broken Arm.

Always crowdy, and filled with chic Parisians, this store was founded by Guillaume Steinmetz, Anaïs Lafarge, and Romain Joste. Hidden in off-beat Le Marais district, it’s the place where you will meet all the editors during any fashion event in the city (forget touristic Colette…). The Broken Arm sells a well-curated selection of clothes from Raf Simons, Balenciaga, Prada or Jacquemus – but instead of choosing one of them, the owners decided to give the window-display space under Serre’s wings for the entire fashion week.

Marine Serre is a French graduate from La Cambre Mode school in Brussels. After fruitful internships at recognised brands (Maison Margiela, Dior, Balenciaga), Serre decided to go her own path. Radical Call for Love is her second season, and it appears to be her break-through moment. The collection, as the designer says, “projects the combination of 19th century Arabic luxurious garments with corporate sportswear branding aesthetics of the 1990s and 2000 into a futurist oriented fashion.” Radical Call for Love is somewhat a visual comment on “urgency and contemporaneity by the tragic events in Paris and Brussels in 2015 and 2016.” The message the designer convyes is presented in metaphorical way, being slightly exposed by Islamic symbols, interestingly transformed into logo-like branding and faux-Nike headbands.

More here.