Why Marine Serre is the next big thing of the Paris Fashion Week

After New York, London and Milan, it's time to Paris to show us what will be the next trends of autumn-winter. From 25 February to 5 March on the most prestigious catwalks there will be over 70 brands: from the enfant prodige Jacquemus who will present its latest creations the first day, at Lanvin that will return Wednesday under the new creative direction of Bruno Sialelli, from Christian Dior and Saint Laurent fighting for the attention on February 26th to Hedi Slimane, who will show the second collection for Celine on March 1st. However, the eyes of the world will inevitably be focused on Chanel and Virginie Viard who, after the death of Karl Lagerfeld, inherited the the legendary maison. There will be not only big names during this PFW, but also many emerging talents such as the British brand Rokh finalist of the LVMH award, right arm for three years by Phoebe Philo in the times of Celine and, above all, as Marine Serre , designer who, season after season, is gaining more and more success.

Marine Serre is a 26-year-old French designer who with her namesake label has generated a big interest among fashionistas, buyers and editors, all just with one show. As long as she can remember, Serre has always had an extravagant style, made of the items she would borrow from the parents' and grandma's closets, she would spend her afternoons looking for cool pieces in second-hand and vintage stores. Her deep love for fashion converged in five years spent studying at the Cambre Mode (S) of Bruxelles, which made her discover closely the industry of fashion and the world of craftsmanship workings as an intern for McQueen, Margiela, Dior and Balenciaga. 

The real turning-point was the collection created at the end of her fifth school year, entitled Radical call for love FW17. The 13 looks reflect the strong personality of the designer and reveal a specific and unique aesthetics, something very rare for a debut collection. Starting from her past experiences, Serre wants haute couture to meet sportswear, by mixing lavish 1800s Arabian dresses with an almost futuristic sports aesthetic. Big silk gowns, long patchwork dresses and jackets with maxi frills coexist perfectly with lycra bodysuits, headbands and tech tops. The Serre universe is characterised by the symbol of the crescent moon, that might have drawn inspiration from Muslim iconography, astrological obsessions or simply from the 'sleep mode' iPhone symbol: the moon features on headbands, bodysuits, long sleeves and boots and turns into the logo of the brand. The collection was shortlisted for many prizes, and went on to win the presitigious LVMH Prize in June 2017.  

The decision to found her own label came naturally, without making any big plans. The first collection had such a strong and positive impact that people wanted to buy her pieces, so she had to trademark her name. For the FW18 collection Serre has a very clear mission, to ignore the boundaries between ready-to-wear, couture, tailoring and sportswear. The show sees more street items like biking shorts and wrap around sunglasses revisited from a futuristic point of view: on the bodysuits (that cover also the head) and the tops, along with the crescent moon, appears also the writing FutureWear. Utilitarianism meets high fashion in an unprecedented union. Safari jackets with enough pockets for women to ditch their bags coexist with silk and velvet dresses. Marine Serre's designs are hybrids: light scarf skirts are combined with lycra logo bodysuits, silk bras over tech turtlenecks, the line between sport and haute couture doesn't exist anymore. Her interest for second-hand fashion and her care for enviromental issues are reflected in the dress made from recycled scarves to reduce fashion industry waste. The range of fabrics used in the collection is wide, besides lycra and silk, Marine is not afraid to play with velvet, denim, PVC and leather: even the richest cloths are used in young and fresh silhouttes. 

According to the words of Marine Serre, her pieces should not be labeled as pure sportswear, because when she's designing them she looks equally to the past and to the future. For her future is reflected in the simple question 'What will I need tomorrow?', but at the same time it investigates about production process that respect the environment. A unique mix, relevant more than ever, that will definitely appeal to a progressively younger demographics, that follows with the same passion haute couture and sportswear. 

Her latest project, the advertising campaign for the SS19 collection, capture the attention of the web for the interesting contrast between fake and authentic, obtained thanks to a graphic that mixed vivid colors and details made in post-production, models in dramatic poses with a taste of years' 90 and the unmistakable style of Serre. Now the eyes are all on the show that the designer will present Tuesday, February 26 at 10.30.