Three years since launching her eponymous brand, Marine Serre’s FW21 collection reflects on the core values underlying her work. Straying from her usual apocalyptic references, Serre focused on family, friends and community and duly called the range ‘Core’.
Instead of presenting through a short film, runway show or even a campaign, Serre took a different approach this time. At her regular 10:30 CEST Paris Fashion Week slot, the designer launched marineserrecore.com which takes you on the journey of Core. It is essentially the foundation and reflection of the Marine Serre brand. If anyone had any doubts on the ethos behind the brand, this collection explains it all. With the objective of avoiding trends, we saw re-iterations of Serre’s past pieces, as well as the introduction of ready-to-wear items imaginable on just about anyone.
While explaining the meaning behind her latest work, Serre said “It’s all of the memory; how everything connects”. She further went on, stating the importance of reflecting on “the interesting processes we’ve put in place; to really think about the garments, and the materials we make them from—the transformation of those is really part of our creativity”.
Silk scarves were draped over body-hugging black tops and dresses, also acting as oversized face masks. The patchwork technique, often used in Serre’s previous collections as well as in her collaboration with A$AP Rocky’s AWGE, was seen on leather brown coats, t-shirts and button-ups. The signature crescent moon, which was catapulted to mainstream fame after being worn by Beyoncé in ‘Black Is King’, was seen throughout in a multitude of hues.
What stood out though was the cast of models. Tapping into a sense of community, Marine Serre enlisted models of all age ranges – even children. Fashion met reality this season, an unexplored theme for Serre’s longtime post-apocalyptic fantasy world the brand had created over the years. A choice surely based on the current dire feeling the pandemic has brought to our reality, Serre states “the goal was to bring more real life to our design process, to bring garments into daily life”.
Not only did Serre give us a collection connected to reality, Core’s dedicated website details the life story of each garment and material used. Hover over any part of your divided screen to see Marine Serre’s collection worn by ordinary people in their day-to-day lives. Click on any video to find out more about the design and production methods used by the brand, including the sourcing of materials, such as bedspreads which were ultimately turned into luxury fashion. A conscious choice towards sustainability, Serre further questions the traditional, and extremely wasteful, ways of the fashion industry, through her use of unconventional materials and deadstock fabrics.
Core defies all fashion norms. It is not meant to be looked at as Marine Serre’s latest season, rather as a culmination of the brand’s work and identity. It is meant to be appreciated, observed, and re-visited over and over again. As Serre puts it herself “When you know who you are, you don’t need to change faces every morning”.
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See also: MARINE SERRE & GENTLE MONSTER COLLABORATE ON “VISIONIZER”
See also: BLUMARINE FW21: A BLAST FROM THE PAST
