Bold - Laura Blézins
When did you start your career as a fashion designer?
I started my career not long ago. I gradueted University just last year, but I've been studying and envolved in fashion for more than ten years now. It has always been my dream and I started pursuing it early in life, by the time I was twelve years old.
What's the concept of your latest collection?
My last project was actually a costume developed for a Carnival contest. The costume is called Pupurrí and was based on brazilian northeastern’s hinterland – a very particular region known as Sertão – and on the movie Bacurau (2019). Pupurrí is plural; amalgam of colors, textures, shapes; of ways to dress and interact with the costume organism. It’s the mix of freedoms of Bacchus, the need for free expression of the Parangolés and the freedom to exist in this world (or not) of Bacurau. The Pupurrí costume converges in a cyberpunk hinterland of desaturated colors illuminated by the golden sun, seeking to merge the plurality of references and the plurality which is typical of the carnival revelry.
Before that, my last real clothing collection was Arredá, which is very close to my heart and beliefs. Arredá is a 100% cotton collection that carries references of the capira culture (the way of living of the communities in São Paulo countryside). Arredá revolves around simplicity, brazilian history and culture. My goal was to bring streetstyle and graphic elements to a simple muslin fabric (very used by these communities in the early 20th century), in which I got to print original pattern designs created by me based on the coffee flower, the peculiar way of speaking of the people in São Paulo’s countryside, the hands of the field workers and on a hand drawn map of the region I was born. I chose only natural supplies to match the concept of simplicity and to keep the collection sustaintable – that’s also why I chose the method of digital printing for the patterns. Arredá is about being. It's about belonging.
What's the kind of person you keep in mind when you create?
I really enjoy streetstyle, so I guess it’s safe to say that I always picture the streets, much more than whoever is going to wear it – I’d love for people who feel comfortable and bold in my clothes to wear them.
What inspires you the most?
Culture and nature, for sure! I have always loved history and I think it adds an element that is so subjective that can’t be interpreted in the same way by more than one person. I love bringing back colective memories and thinking about the history of my family, of my country, make use of my own personal experiences together with my identity as a brazilian designer.
What's the future of fashion?
Fashion is ever changing – that’s a fact. We’ve been feeling that a lot needed change way before the COVID19 pandemic, but I really guess it accelerated things a lot. I really don’t believe in seasonal collections anymore and I think all the fashion process is going to slow down, because it has to. There’s plenty of factors involved in this need – the social exploration of cheap labor, the colapse of natural resources, the emptness that mass production has brought to creativity projects. I ain’t a believer of the Slow Fashion as it was put – the consumer society in which we are inserted is not going to slow down easily, but several changes are need to make this transition to super fast consumism to a slower and more respectful one.
What about your next project?
I am currently working on a project a bit diferente from what I usually design. It's called Lime&spicy and is the debut collection of the brand that carries my name. I’m really excited about it, but I’m also taking my time to make sure it’s going to be a good, sustaintable one. Guess I’m already applying the concept of slow design. The biggest challenge in this one are the fabrics – I’m not used to work with man-made fibers, but I longed for practical and durable clothes in a sporty vibe. It’s also my first completely comercial collection – designed to be worn on an everyday basis – as I try to bring more sustaintability and mobility to this segment.
