True to form, Spring found the designer reflecting on the capricious pace of travel, exploration and the coupling sensibilities that both of these elements harmonise.
Joao Maraschin is on the fast track. Just seasons after launching his label, he took his offerings on a rakish road trip for Spring. And with this season, Maraschin put a significant distance between himself and his former identity as a designer of moody, flamboyant things.
For SS25, he seemed to be interested in inserting himself somewhere along the sweet/subtle/unassumingly sassy continuum, a place where Maraschin has been known to play with apt skill.
“My brand has always been a personal exercise of my creativity, evolving as I grow as a designer and a person,” noted the designer, adding how he sees fashion as a “living organism.” But when it comes to references, can one ever have enough?
“Many things have happened in the last year that set me on the road to travel,” he adds. “Reflecting on resources and pace, we have chosen to edit pieces from our previous collection which epitomise a backpack to carry along new and exciting ventures,” he concludes.
What that entailed was an accumulation of tone shifts that made for a palate-cleansing proposal of day-to-night offerings: the designer has always had an eye for colour, and the hues came on strong across the runway.
The collection’s palette introduced blue as its pivotal hue to the signature off-white, green, orange and red, adding ample range on the front of practicality and comfort with the addition of hoodies and tracksuits decked in frisky jacquards. And he didn’t abandon his former inclinations altogether.
Beyond shape, some of his toppers were meticulously created in resined wool; others were handmade in macrame using macrame with yarns from Brazilian craftworkers, coupled with crochet for layering. These details did feel like a departure from Maraschine’s Fall collection, resulting in more artsy territory. It will be interesting to see which approach sticks, given Maraschin’s knack for a special dress (which shouldn’t bug anyone, especially if he chooses to put his focus on his pattern-cutting strengths).
by Chidozie Obasi
All runway images by James Cochrane