“For me, the ideal creation is by letting go. You might have a few parameters, but from there – it is about letting go and seeing what happens.” Amsterdam/London-based designer Max Zara Sterck chants this hymn via her latest collection for her debut on- schedule LFW show. Among discussing the process and inspiration behind the collection, Sterck tells 5’ELEVEN” how “dance is a tool to show the wearability and three-dimensionality of [her] designs.”
How, if at all, are you meeting fashion week differently this year as compared to previous years?
Well, I have not shown in this way before because my other two collections were presented digitally with photos. This is the first time I was on-schedule. So, generally, this was all new to me. For me, the biggest difference – and not just during fashion week – is that I focused more on movement and dance. Via film, I am trying to really capture that feeling you have in real life when you see the movement of the garments.
Tell us about your process and perspective when putting this collection together and what is the inspiration behind this collection?
Well, I don’t work my collections based on seasons. So, every time, I really get inspired by the models I work with (which are mostly dancers) and also the fabrics I work with. I choose a dancer and a fabric to work with and she walks/dances around the studio in the material. It is a very long process of just observing the interaction between the body and the fabric. When they start dancing with the fabric, I just get so inspired, and I see so many shapes start to develop. It feels like endless inspiration for me!
So, do you choose the fabric based on the dancer or do you have a fabric in mind first?
Well, it depends. For this collection, we collaborated with a textile company based in Paris called inDUO and they have a technology that is stain and sweat resistant – and you can dance in it, sweat in it etc. It is perfect for all the dressy clothes we don’t dare wear out of fear of being clumsy with coffee or wine spills! When I found this company, I was so inspired by their fabric, and we collaborated to create a new black and white organic cotton fabric featuring their stain and sweat resistant technology. So, in this case, that is how the fabric came about. Saying that – I have been meeting a lot of dancers and choreographers lately, and of course I am interested in working with them if they are interested in working with us! I feel like let’s meet and create!
Describe the collection in just three words.
Sensual, movement, shapes.
What type of audience/person do you have in mind in regard to who is wearing this collection?
The audience is every person that has a dynamic lifestyle! I have a lot of beautiful garments that I don’t wear because they are just not comfortable. So, I really just want to create those beautiful garments that are so comfortable that you can actually wear every day and for every occasion. Why can’t we wear them every day? Body following, body flowing.
