Festimode Casablanca Fashion Week 2012, Day 3

The third and last day of FCFW was a full evening again, with three designers showing their collections: Noureddine Amir, Ghitta Laskrouif and Hatice Gökce.

As a child Noureddine Amir dreamed about being a couturier. But he became more than that. Because he doesn’t want to obey to the laws of fashion – by presenting a collection every season plus following the trends – he starts designing theater and film-costumes and mixes his creations with installations. He’d rather be an artist without boundaries. He admires Issey Miyake, and it shows in his collections which are sculptures almost made of raffia, linen or wool.

Ghitta Laskrouif presented her first collection at FCFW in 2007 under the label Mozarabe. This edition she introduces her latest project G. She is fascinated by movement and music and therefor participates regularly with modern dancers and performers. She also likes to play and experiment with different materials, nowadays she focuses on more fabrics with an ecological origin. Her silhouettes are simple and architectural.

Hatice Gökce is originally from Turkey and she designs mens and womenswear. She is known for her experimental design and use of innovative fabrics. She is also the founder and board member of Fashion Designers Association (MTD) in addition to her active roles in all kinds of civil society and social activities. Gökçe has undersigned many achievements on her avant-garde designs and extraordinary activities both in Turkey and abroad.

 

Inside the Medina, Casablanca

Team-member Peter and Jon went inside the Medina in Casablanca and made a small reportage about it.

Casablanca Fashion Week 2012 Preview: Said Mahrouf

One of the designers who will show his collection at Casablanca Fashion Week is Said Mahrouf (40). He is the one who invited Team Peter Stigter to Casablanca. That’s no coincidence, since Mahrouf lived for more than 30 years in the Netherlands – he came to our country with his parents when he was 9 – and studied Fashion Design at the Gerrit Rietveld Academy in Amsterdam. This year in January he presented his collection for the first time at Amsterdam Fashion Week.

Mahrouf is fascinated by the interaction between human movements and space. He gradually focused his work on designing costumes for site-specific performances. His work has been displayed at the New Museum of Contemporary Art and the Cooper Hewitt National Design Museum, both in New York, the Utrecht Central Museum, the Amsterdam Municipal Museum, Carriage Works Gallery in Sydney and in Casablanca’s Loft Gallery. In 2011 he was appointed artistic director of the 15th edition of Morocco’s main traditional fashion event, Caftan, which was broadcast live from Marrakech. Said Mahrouf presents a ready-to-wear collection at Festimode-Casablanca Fashion Week annually.

His fashion-collections are an ode to femininity and elegance. The soft, sensual lines of his designs truly come to life on a female body. And his clientele in Casablanca loves it. After years of living in Amsterdam and traveling the world, Said Mahrouf returned  to Casablanca in 2010 definitely. In his atelier he designs and sells ready to wear de luxe. And it made him a celebrity in Morocco. Moroccan fashion is often traditional in spirit, what Mahrouf designs is considered avant-garde. And elite wants that.

Team Peter Stigter visited the designer in his atelier in Casablanca for a preview of his new collection, which is inspired by the colors of Marrakech.

More information about Said Mahrouf and Casablanca Fashion Week