Azzi & Osta’s Latest Couture Collection Is Futuristic For A World Ready To Live On Mars
The Azzi & Osta Spring-Summer 2023 collection turns to the planet Mars in a theme called Mars Astral Philharmonic. If you know the Lebanese duo, they are known for unveiling very unique themed collections, although they are usually based on a destination or movie theme like 007. original and forward-thinking collection in which the duo of master couture craftsmen romanticize technology by creating for this imaginary cosmic opera.
“The theme came from the fascination of how the world plans to live in space as if it were in the near future,” say the house’s founders, George Azzi and Assaad Osta. “With passengers already booked for a trip to Mars and hotels to be built in space, the whole idea feels inevitable and indeed real. Not Mars specifically, but the hundred people from Earth who live on Mars is one of the most ambitious space projects of the near future. So if we envision life on Mars becoming a reality, then fashion and art on Mars will follow.”
So, what would Martian couture fashion look like? Azzi and Osta respond to this. It’s a place of mutated dresses with romantic, futuristic, organic and geometric silhouettes. The looks are big and extravagant with long falling velvet fabric contrasted with sheer organza complementing a dress. Her use of silk, satin, crystal weave and embroidered tulle can be found on short dresses, tailored dresses and military-inspired shoulders. The duo also includes 3D embroidery, creating silvery and tactile surfaces reminiscent of waves on the moon.
The color palette includes poisonous green, ultraviolet, and infrared roses of Aurora Borealis, seen in the Aurora Borealis. Pink, coral, fluorescent yellow, absinthe green, cosmic blue, jet black and flashes of gold and silver are etched into the fashion story the duo seeks to tell through colour.
You’d think they were inspired by surrealism, but Azzi and Osta insist. “The work of surrealist artists was not an inspiration for this specific subject, but space itself, the colors, the galaxies, the endless shapes and colors of the nebula are more than sufficient for surrealism,” they say.
As the wearer of the collection is going to a cosmic opera, opera gloves are an important part of the look. “Little by little, flying vehicles are dropping guests onto the red carpet. A number of major artists will perform Music from Earth, the titles of the Golden Disc launched into the universe by the Voyager probes in 1977 as a testament to Earth’s culture,” the collection notes explain.
It’s a collection intended for the red carpet, a trend that was gripping during the last Haute Couture Week. This season, designers have opted for the sophisticated and romantic, yet daring. “Philarmonie Astrale is a romantic approach to space and futurism, it says that a romantic will always be a romantic.” The woman wearing this collection is first and foremost a bold woman, eager to stand out, stand out and cause a stir. It’s as full of mysteries and surprises as space itself, but just as romantic and poetic as a walk under a starry night,” say the duo.
From the shores of the European Riviera, 1950s photography, the canals of Amsterdam, espionage and now cosmic operas. What will Azzi & Osta come up with next?
follow me Twitter or LinkedIn.