2 posts tagged "Alex Mattsson"
London’s Lean Mean Fashion Machine
London is jam-packed with emerging fashion talents. And now you can find all of them (or, at least, a lot of them) in one place. On February 17, Machine-A, a concept store founded by Stavros Karelis, will open permanently on 13 Brewer Street (it existed a few years ago, in an experimental capacity). Working with rainbow-haired stylist Anna Trevelyan, who serves as the store’s fashion director, Karelis will stock clothes by brand-new designers (Ashley Williams, Shaun Samson, Agi & Sam) and bright young stars (Louise Gray, Christopher Raeburn, Sibling), alongside wares by established labels like Raf Simons, Chalayan, and Mugler. Karelis hopes that Machine-A will serve as a platform to help promising youngsters establish an early retail presence. In addition to simply selling new designers’ collections, Machine-A will work with up-and-comers on collaborations and in-store installations, the first of which will feature Alex Mattsson. “My personal aim is to [offer] inspirational collections, innovative products, and comfortable high-quality clothes,” says Karelis, who also notes that Trevelyan’s input and keen eye for the next big thing have been invaluable. Case in point: the Spring ’13 ad campaign Trevelyan styled for the shop. Style.com has an exclusive look at the Meinke Klein-lensed images, which feature Machine-A’s Spring stock from Louise Gray (above) and Ashley Williams (below).
Machine-A, located at 13 Brewer Street in London, will open on February 17.
Arrrgh, Real Monsters!
Next February, ARRRGH! Monstres de Mode, an exhibition presented by Greek collective Atopos CVC that highlights designers who distort and mask the human form with their fantastically frightening, sometimes grotesque garments, will land in Paris. Having debuted in Athens last year, the Vassilis Zidianakis-curated show is an extension of the book, Not a Toy, Fashioning Radical Characters, and highlights such shocking shape-shifters as Alexander McQueen, Gareth Pugh, Maison Martin Margiela, Charlie Le Mindu, and Walter van Beirendonck, as well as lesser-known young talents like Alex Mattsson and Leutton Postle. Emerging British menswear designer, Craig Green—who’s set to show his second collection in London next month with the MAN initiative—was tapped to create the identity of the exhibition. Green brought Atopos’ definition of monsters—described as “everything strange”—to life with four green and yellow figures that vaguely recall Pac-Man. “I wanted to make something that resembled a lo-fi graphic,” explained Green. The designer, who’s begun to make a name for himself with his art-meets-fashion concoctions, crafted his curious critters from wooden frames and stretched canvas. “They’re meant to be a family,” says Green. “So they fit together like male and female forms; they’re couples in love,” he explains.
Twenty-six-year-old Green, a Central Saint Martins graduate, has pieces from his 2012 M.A. collection, as well as a sculptural garment from his upcoming Fall 2013 collection, in the show. “I feel very fortunate to be featured alongside these mega designers, as well as small ones that I greatly respect.”
ARRRGH! Monstres de Monde opens on February 13 at La Gaîté Lyrique, located at 3bis, Rue Papin in Paris’ 3rd arrondissement.