“She Is Your Second Skin”
For SS22, Amsterdam/London based designer Max Zara Sterck explores a very modern dilemma of how we express human sensuality and ‘touch’ in the digital age. Max Zara Sterck created the poem ‘She Is Your Second Skin’ with Olivia Atkins, Max Zara is as always led first by the fabric and how it falls on the body. This is an invitation to explore your body, your emotions, and your energy.
Through her designs she highlights the sense of touch. Garments need to be worn, handled, felt and treated like a second skin. Max Zara sees garments as a natural extension of the body, for movement and expression. Creating clothes to empower the woman within and that follow the lines of the endless diversity of body forms.
Max Zara gives her devoted attention and appreciation to human form as the purest expression of oneself. She uses the body as the leading element of all creation, as the tangible expression of your personal energy. As the connection between your inner world and the outer world.
In her designing process, she observes the body to discover shapes. She intuitively listens to the fabric and its connection to the body. Naturally, lines appear and the unexpected evolves. Body following, body flowing.
This season Max Zara has collaborated with Paris-based Textile developer iNDUO to develop an environment friendly fabric, which responds well to movement reflecting the dynamic lifestyle of the wearer. With iNDUO’s stain and sweat resistant innovation, they have together achieved GOTS certification for an organic black and white cotton fabric. These fabrics are used for durability, their high quality and responsible production and are the backbone of the collection complemented with some other natural fabrics such as cotton silk and wool.
Dancers and movement are central to Max Zara practice and are the start and end of the process and the garment feels and how it moves is as important as how it looks. Showing the beauty of freedom and the second skin.
This seasons look book features Martine Thoelen the inspirational incredible talented artist as the model. She is 52 years old and has a sense of confidence; experience and authenticity that resonated with Max Zara who wants to explore and expose industry beauty standards in terms of size, shape or age. Celebrating all female bodies.
All Images Courtesy of Max Zara Sterck
FILM DIRECTION/Max Zara Sterck DESIGNER/ Max Zara Sterck COMPONIST/Edmund Shaw Poem/ Olivia Atkins CINEMATOGRAPHER/Sigi van ‘t Schip LIGHT ASSISTANT/ Hein van den Heuvel CHOREOGRAPHER/ Jurrien Schobben FILMEDITOR/ Nikki Gorissen BEAUTY TEAM Alexandra Borcila & ASSISTANT/ Minou Mijers Represented by NCL Representation Sophie Wortelboer & ASSISTANTS/ Kato Fierkens, Iljitsj Opatja, Kris van Laerhoven Represented by House of Orange Agency DANCER 1 Yulanne de Groot DANCER 2 Alexis Geddes DANCER 3 Angelica Villalon DANCER 4 Kim van der Put DANCER 5 Demi Verheezen DRESSER 1 Marieke van de Ven DRESSER 2 Josephine Goverts HANDYMAN Hein van den Heuvel PHOTOGRAPHY PHOTOGRAPHY/Shari Ruzzi MAUH/Lili Galvan MAUH ASSISTANT/Emma Catry MODEL/ Martine Thoelen