Los Angeles Fashion Week Fall '09: MartinMartin
The Fall 2009 MartinMartin collection was inspired by the concept of darkness.
“The connotation takes into the concept of black being the sum of all colors, which means from the MartinMartin perspective that black is the most positive of all colors and feelings in the universe,” said co-founder Eric Martin. “We perceive black as being all-loving and very positive.”
Although the dark, Goth-tinged collection was primarily black, it also included many shades of gray and an abundance of fabrics and textures. The line is created the husband-and-wife design duo of Eric Martin and Diane Moss-Martin, who said they seek to dress “the rich punks of the world” or those anti-fashion types who embrace creativity but tend to rebel against fashion in the traditional sense. The two showed their line on March 14 at BOXeight Fashion Week.
This season, the Martins focused on mixing fabrics such as wools, leather and satin to create a juxtaposition between structure and fluidity. Fabrics were combined in innovative ways even within one garment, such as a jacket that utilized denim for the body, leather for sleeves and knits on the back, and side panels for added comfort. They also added plenty of fully fashioned knits in merino and cashmere wools, including an artful, asymmetric cardigan for men and a long spider-web coat for women. Also new this season were accessories such as a zip-up hooded scarf, leg warmers, handbags and gloves.
The look of MartinMartin evolves each season, but the avant-garde concept of its artistic draped and tailored pieces remains constant. “What our customers bought even last year or five years ago will still go with what we’re doing now,” Moss-Martin explained. “It’s always evolution, not revolution,” Martin added. —N. Jayne Seward
