The Bite Magazine - Spring/Summer 2023 - Issue 33

bitefashion Maya Magnay Mel Hewgill Eduardo Moreira EDUARDO MOREIRA Using his rural Portuguese homeland as a reference, Eduardo Moreira paid hom- age to its folklore legacy, family memoirs from the civil war and the oppressive dic- tatorship of António de Oliveira Salazar. His collection ‘Arrebentas’, meaning ‘to break’, explored Portugal’s ultra-conserv- ative oppression and celebrated its liber- ation. AI algorithms were incorporated to form ghostly figures as figments of the past through abstract shapes that created exciting, contemporary silhouettes. Robust denim and stiff cotton twill were two hardwearing materials juxtaposed with fluid draping. Eduardo also used vin- tage yarns and deadstock fabrics sourced in Portugal to utilise traditional tufting techniques, while the corseted arms and legs referenced a confining aesthetics. MAYA MAGNAY The mundanity of city commuters and their traditional ‘business’ wear was a focal point of Maya Magnay’s ‘Subverting Nor- mality’ collection. The designer looked at how clothes can restrict our movements by connecting body parts and sees fashion as art that goes on a person rather than as necessary apparel. Her unconventional silhouettes were referenced in 2D maps of human bodies or from garments playfully folded on the form as you would ‘dress’ a paper doll. Maya demonstrated various ways these garments could be worn by incorporating 3D modelling using tubes of ribbing as an essential part of her development concept. Her experimental knit pieces adhered and stretched with the body on the one hand but restricted movement on the other. The scanned anatomy was translated into unusual abstract patterns through digital jacquards that crumpled curvature lines through the resultant faces on some of the designs. MEL HEWGILL Through exploration of surrealism and absurdity, designer Mel Hewgill looked to the work of Spanish artist Joan Miró and historical clown costumes to create her menswear collection ‘Sobreteixims’. It’s the name given to Miró textile works translated from Catalan to mean ‘super- imposed’ or ‘overwhelmed’. Mel embraced the artist’s mantra, “The simplest things give me ideas”, to create these playful, oversized, draped silhouettes harnessing tailored harlequin motifs and celebrating the simplicity of stripes. Her expressive tapestry pieces in striking hand-knitted apparel ‘soften masculinity’ with flamboy- ance, colour and fun, emerging as a breath of fresh air in her accomplished menswear statement.