São Paulo – The 48th edition of São Paulo Fashion Week, which closed on
18 October, took place at the Brazilian Cultures Pavilion, in Ibirapuera
Park. Looking back, we can conclude that many brands presented a similar
idea: more sustainable fashion, supported by the upcycling of materials. At
the same time, more attention was paid to ethnic and physical diversity:
many ‘real people’ participated on the catwalk and for the first time a
transgender man, the Brazilian, Sam Porto, walked the runway during the
event. Accessibility also had a say: in a partnership with the city of São
Paulo, through SMPED – Municipal Secretariat of People with Disabilities –
São Paulo Fashion Week provided an audio description of the Greenhouse
Project presentations for the visually impaired.
After the disappointing previous edition, when the event location was
too far away from the city center and the surrounding area rundown, the
loss of top brands participating and the tragic death of model Tales Cotta,
the event returned to Ibirapuera Park, which was easier to access and where
the number of presentations was reduced resulting in a more coherent
program. There were 26 against 35 catwalk presentations during the last
edition, but we must bear in mind that beachwear brands only show once a
year. The Greenhouse Project brought six new designers, some already
present in the last edition, like Korshi and Victor Hugo Mattos.
Recycling on the agenda
The need to rethink environmental issues has led many designers to look
for a different way to (re)use materials. Fernanda Yamamoto took advantage
of the ten-year celebration of the brand and built a collection from 300
garments from all previous collection presentations. “It was a challenge to
resuscitate the past and give new meaning to everything that represents our
history; it was also an exercise in criticism, detachment and testing of
new possibilities,” said Yamamoto to FashionUnited. There were items with
collars, waistbands, pockets and other parts of hundreds of other garments
resulting in different but not less wearable looks. Womenswear brand Victor
Hugo Mattos reused tailor-made garments and with that developed a new
perspective with lush embroidery. At the same time the brand used crochet
with light feminine touches and embroidery. Fernando Miró, from Mipinta,
worked in the Greenhouse Project with other ready-made articles, including
bags, transformed into a jacket. “I often say that Mipinta is more than a
brand; it is a research lab and we are now in the process of rethinking our
principles in the fashion world,” explained Miró.
Functionality and timeless luxury
Most of the collections brought functional elements such as utility
pockets, cut-outs with zips (enabling garments to be transformed, such as
João Pimenta’s overalls, whose legs contained side seam zips, that could be
transformed into skinny or baggy leg trousers and also into garments with
buttoned sleeves). This feature was present at Ellus, which brought a whole
urban vibe in trousers, skirts, overalls, furs and jackets, with looks from
the 1990s. Korshi’s Greenhouse utility garments, that could be used in many
different ways, continued as more of an extension of the previous
collection. With Modem the double-sided knitted garments and with Lucas
Leão the parkas with cargo pockets are worth highlighting.
On the other hand, Beira’s large, well-cut looks of long-sleeved
trousers and shirts, the overlapping canvas garments in Apartment 03, and
knitted pleated garments in Neriage brought just the right amount of
timeless sophistication. Hundred also showed lightweight garments on the
catwalk, with flowing fabrics, linen and comfortable models. Gloria Coelho
presented a collection with perfect cuts and trims, with some dotted
patterns. Reinaldo Lourenço mixed elements of English Punk that resulted in
an extremely luxurious collection with lightweight fabrics, velvet and
leather. Angela Brito presented asymmetrical garments in bold colours, as
did BobStore. Lilly Sarti merged recurring elements into her work with
refined results, transparencies, fringes and sparkles. Metallic sparkles
were also a prominent feature in the collection of Lino Villaventura.
Brazilianness revisited and new presentations
Amapô, a brand that mainly focuses on jeans, was inspired by Expedito
Seleiro, from the North East of Brazil, who is famous for finely crafted
leather saddles, and the collection brought a lot of colour, with
house-shaped pockets and north-eastern patterned jeans. Seleiro’s design
could be seen on accessories such as fanny packs and prints. Newcomer,
Isaac Silva, based his design on Bahia and presented all-white garments
with Richelieu lace work, typical of the region. Fabiana Milazzo based her
theme on the countryside (specifically on the song “I want a house in the
country” from Elis Regina) and presented knitted garments and wide skirts
with embroidered delicate and luxurious flowers. PatBo focused on colonial
Portugal, producing garments with tiled prints and local embroidery.
The biggest novelty appeared with the presentation of Another Place at
the Italia theatre in the city centre. Instead of a normal catwalk
presentation a film was shown, featuring actor Johnny Massaro who played a
pop star wearing various costumes, trousers, shirts and jackets. After the
film, models showed the garments used by the actor on the catwalk.
This article was originally published on FashionUnited.BR, translated and edited
Fotos: Agência Fotosite
