Fashion isn’t only about clothes that follow a particular trend. It’s a cultural phenomenon that has existed since the first human beings decided to use fabrics to cover themselves. That fashion sense is ingrained in our DNA, and for millennia it has been part of our social development. For that reason, no matter how trendy or fashionable the new pieces presented on the runway are, at the end of the day, what makes them so amazing and appealing is how they portray who the designer is. This year’s Mercedes Benz Fashion Week in Mexico City showed how Mexican fashion designers are interpreting their roots and cultural background to create cool, fashion-forward pieces. Take a look at how these fashion designers create bold and fashionable pieces.
Benito Santos
Benito Santos is one of the most renowned fashion designers in Mexico, with a long list of celebrities and public figures who love him. For his new collection, Santos was inspired by the amazing imagery of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema, particularly, the work of cinematographer Gabriel Figueroa. Pueblerina, named after the famous 1949 movie, is a collection that delves into the fashion and imagery of rural Mexico, with black-and-white pieces often adorned with a tinge of red. Benito Santos really managed to capture the beautiful essence of Mexican fashion in modern and elegant pieces.
Lydia Lavin
The Lydia Lavin brand comes from a need to preserve and promote indigenous textiles and crafts. To do so, Lavin works directly with ten different artisan communities to explore and understand the importance of these fabrics and intricate patterns in Mexican culture. Her new collection Bamba is a gorgeous attempt to show the world the influence of Afro-Mexican communities in the overall cultural and artistic manifestations in the country.
Daniela Villa
Inspired by the surrealist artworks of Mexican artist Pedro Friedeberg, Daniela Villa’s collection Visiones Fugitivas is unique proof of how art and fashion are undeniably connected. Through peculiar color combinations and really modern lines, Villa created a very elegant and clean collection that evokes, not only the artist’s work, but also a time in the cultural history of Mexico like no other.
Jesús de la Garsa
As the winner of the last edition of the contest “Mexico Diseña” by ELLE, Jesús de la Garsa presented Adela, a collection inspired by the metamorphosis of butterflies. With vivid colors, beautiful metallics, and intricate duochromatic fabrics, the collection focused on the shapes and colors of the natural process. The collection takes its name from de la Garsa’s mother, who has always been a huge inspiration for him along with his grandmother, as they were the ones who taught him and pushed him to get into the industry.
Pineda Covalín
Pineda Covalín is a brand that’s known for using patterns and designs from traditional Mexican art and crafts and bringing them into high fashion. For this collection, called Botanicaltepec, the brand led by Cristina Pineda and Ricardo Covalín was inspired by Chapultepec, the famous forest in the middle of Mexico City. Their pieces had animals and plant elements you can find in the forest, with their characteristic high-quality fabrics and colorful patterns.
Armando Takeda
The Future is Armando Takeda’s last collection, inspired by the unique artifacts found in Mexico City’s vintage stores and our curiosity about the future, creating a narrative that makes us feel nostalgic for what’s to come. The collection features futuristic sportswear with traditional elements of Mexican crafts, mainly with beaded embroidery characteristic of Huichol art. In that way, Takeda merges his own Mexican roots with his approach to modernism in fashion. A collection with a very unique narrative.
These designers were just a few of the selected ones to present at this year’s Fashion Week, due to their creative takes on Mexican fashion. But beyond their great designs and fashion sense, these were the highlights of the week due to that unique way to represent and reinterpret the colors, shapes, and lines of Mexican art and culture.
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