NYLON Magazine - September 2007 - (Page 76) BULL MARKET EMILIO DE LA MORENA ENTERS THE RING WITH THE FLAMBOYANCE OF A MODERNDAY MATADOR. BY ANDREA CUSICK. PHOTOGRAPHED BY DAN MARTENSEN Emilio de la Morena doesn’t fit the mold of a London fashion designer: He doesn’t live in the city’s gentrifying East End, doesn’t work out of a grimy studio with poor lighting, and isn’t overly familiar with the New Rave scene (Boombox is most definitely not his favorite spot for a night out). Born in Alicante, Spain, de la Morena actually studied sculpture before immigrating to Britain where he earned an honors degree in Business and Commerce from Edinburgh University. An early career as a brand consultant sparked his interest in design, and later he began working with Jonathan Saunders. Eventually, he did pass through the halls of Central Saint Martins, where he studied menswear. De la Morena’s first outing under his own name, for fall, explores the intersection between men’s and women’s fashion, and evolved from his roots in Spain and the country’s bullfighting traditions. “You have these real macho men in colorful tights in with the bulls and then all these women who are suffering because their husbands or sons could die, so they kind of hide away until the whole thing is over. Then they come out and celebrate,” he says. Playing with this idea, de la Morena created a collection of crisp white shirts paired with black high-waisted skirts, tights, and double lapelled jackets. He gussied up vividly hued dresses (and matching tights) with armor-like, riveted shoulder guards in fabric cut close to form—some with attached contrasting mesh that lends a sculptural yet delicate finish. This eye-catching collection earned de la Morena the New Gen award from the British Fashion Council even before the clothes ever hit the catwalk. But the rising star remains modest. “At this point, I’m just happy to be raising my profile,” he says. stylist: ken baldwin. hair: dennis gotsoulos for redken urban experiment at magnetny.com. makeup: munemi using est cosmetics at see management. model: bojana panic at women. dress by emilio de la morena, leggings by yohji yamamoto.
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