The artist and leatherworker Nadia Chellaoui presents the lookbook of her FW23 collection, inspired by her country and her childhood memories. Devoured by her passion and creativity, she is one of the few Moroccan artists whose identity and codes are unique.
The face, an iconic signature and emblem of the brand, has become a symbol of freedom and self-expression. Inspired by painters such as Modigliani or Picasso, Nadia Chellaoui asserts her visual and pictorial references, and says that the face is for her a kind of state of mind that she cultivated since her youth:
“The face is for me a kind, of social escape, a state of mind that gives me the strength to assume my difference, my culture and my emotions.”
The design of the bags were built through the childhood memories of the artist painter. Bathed since birth in a world full of colors and punctuated by scents, Nadia Chellaoui remembers her, as a child, contemplating her grandmother embroidering. This face is actually the artist’s view of a world full of perceptions and inspirations.
“The bag is synonymous with escape, travel and passage … To give the possibility of transporting my pictorial works through an accessory symbol of femininity, had become, for me a necessity ” tells the painter.
A cocktail of her Moroccan culture, her attraction to cubism and her passion for colors, gives birth to the bag, synonymous with struggle and fragility. Sketch by sketch, her imagination overflows. Nadia Chellaoui creates numerous models in order to address a wide audience by leaving a message of love and freedom.
Each bag has a strong identity that gives the wearer the power to experience, during a journey or a visit, a sense of self-confidence and a new way of looking at the things around us.
Handcrafted by women who have kept this heritage alive through the centuries, the brand’s signature takes shape with a face that is pre-drawn and then filled with a carefully chosen selection of colored threads. The colors reflect, shine and highlight the leather. A wide range of colors is chosen with a method related to his profession of painter. A first in Moroccan embroidery where modern art blends with historical heritage: a new style is born.
Leather: the art of Moroccan leatherworkers
A drastic selection of the best hides and the best leather traditions is made beforehand. The choice of leather is carefully selected by the artist.
The assembly of different materials is a tribute to her favorite painter Picasso who associated pre-existing elements to make his works of art unique. Nadia uses this technique by creating geometric shapes and mixing materials.
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