Lemaire closes Paris Digital Fashion Week with a mixed filmed parade

"There was something scary about the period, we asked ourselves a lot of questions about the rest of our adventure" , confesses Christophe Lemaire, met a few days before presenting the new collection of the brand that bears his name, on which he works alongside Sarah-Linh Tran. A season designed during containment. “We had to make choices. It was interesting to arbitrate what was necessary, useful, the difference between the two, superfluous and fanciful. We had a lot of exciting debates for the construction of this collection ”, completes his pair. Among these choices, one seems particularly strong, that of pushing the gender mix between men and women even further. This season, male and female collections are shown at the same time. An initiative intended to last, while the question of the temporality of fashion arises for an industry shaken lately by the crisis. “We have always worked with men and women in parallel. It seemed logical to us to show the cohesion, the bridges between the two: there are many common fabrics, of unisex ” , explains Sarah-Linh Tran.“The situation confirmed our beliefs that we have always had. We wanted to introduce the man and the woman earlier, together, for a long time. The system, until then, was a little absurd, exhausting to conceive, rather schizophrenic, because it was necessary to wait two months to finish a collection started with the pre-collection ” , confesses Christophe Lemaire.

The silhouettes of workwear or military inspiration are treated in more noble materials Lemaire

It remains to be seen how to present them. It will be via a video shot at the Duperré school in Paris, where the brand has been running a showroom for the past few days. Revealed at the end of Paris Digital Fashion Week, it is like a filmed parade. “How can you find emotion and movement, the dynamics of a parade? We cannot replace the dramatic moment of the parade, but at least it shows the clothes in motion, ” confesses Christophe Lemaire. A crossover of elegant silhouettes, like passers-by who meet on an abstract, neutral street, bordered by white walls. The outfits follow the codes that make Lemaire successful. “We went even further in our approach to clothing, which is to build evolving collections, with a wardrobe that complements that of the previous one. We always believed that we did not change clothes all seasons, that we could create good clothes that we would like to keep and that help us to feel ourselves and in confidence, and to which we add each season of new elements, " says the Frenchman.

Most looks are unisex. In men, the pants are loose, with a laced or belted waist, the long shirts, and the shoulder of the blazers, often unlined, falls slightly, with wider sleeves. The colors are neutral, discreet, with beige, slightly past olive green, off-white, deep black. The blues, denim or almost turquoise, dynamite the whole. A range of colors built remotely, via Zoom and courier, and inspired by the interiors of the two creators. The materials seem incredibly comfortable to wear: cotton, sometimes mixed with nylon, linen. Workwear-inspired pieces are prewashed for more comfort. "We use materials that are easy to maintain, that last, because we want to put everything in the machine," laughs Sarah-Linh Tran, "we think a lot about our own relationship with clothing, in the morning, when we have to dress. We create a wardrobe that is easy to appropriate, clothes that are solutions. ”

A collaboration with early 20th century artist Martin Ramirez dresses shirts and dresses. The mayor