Photography by Rory van Millingen
MARQUES’ALMEIDA – Spring / Summer 2014
Following last season’s ballgown-inspired collection, MARQUES’ALMEIDA turns its focus to the after party, and look to the early 00s where millennium celebrations and clichéd fascinations with the exotic kindle the exuberant, cross-cultural aesthetic for Spring / Summer. A new confidence is introduced, using the combination of Devon Aoki and Frankie Rayder to convey a demure, somewhat strange beauty in possession of a sexiness that can only be described as defiant.
Particularly playful with shape this season, the designers, in their signature irreverent style, twist and turn fabrics around the body to evoke Eastern dress. The mandarin jacket gets a grunge update and throughout, hints of the Japanese Obi and the kimono produce S/S 14’s composed, sexy mood. Lightweight, asymmetrical pieces add to the free-spirited air of party while raw decadence comes in the form of tube dresses and bootleg trousers. MARQUES’ALMEIDA denim staples also get an update in metallic denim and organza. Bright, cool hues and iridescent films colour this collection of lounge and party-wear, presented through the lens of the brand’s grunge and boyish spirit.
A nostalgic but progressive remix of the Chemical Brothers, Basement Jaxx and All Saints soundtrack the season’s merry hour, wherein a hyper-feminised, womanly evolution of the brand’s foundation unfolds. Staying up until dawn is standard.
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Trained in womenswear, Marta Marques and Paulo Almeida launched MARQUES’ALMEIDA in April 2011 and showed for their first two seasons under Fashion East.
Having been awarded NEWGEN sponsorship from the British Fashion Council and Topshop, they are now showing their Spring Summer 2013 collection on schedule at London Fashion Week.
While their aesthetic evokes a raw effortlessness, the pair’s technical sensibilities are revealed in the construction of each piece. Cutting their teeth at Vivienne Westwood and Preen respectively, Marques and Almeida took the natural course of combining talents while on the MA at Central Saint Martins – hitting the mark between impulse and consideration.
Press Contact lilli@aipr.co.uk
