renata morales trend breaker fashion magazine by shawna cohen

TREND BREAKER

PHOTOGRAPHY BY GEORGE FOK FOR PHI-CREATE

The surreal work of Canadian fashion designer Renata Morales crosses over into art and pop. By SHAWNA COHEN

ARCADE FIRE. GRIMES. SLIM TWIG. THESE ARE HOUSEhold names in the indie rock and pop worlds, each possessing a distinct sound and unique vision. They also happen to share a powerful secret weapon: Renata Morales. The Montreal-based fashion designer is best known for her eponymous label rife with brazen prints, bold patterns and elaborate appliqués, but these days she’s gaining notoriety for

EDITOR: ELIO IANNACCI

her dramatic costume designs for some of Canada’s hottest musicians—many of them her close friends.

The move from ready-to-wear to costume design is a natural progression for 37-year-old Morales, who has never been big on convention. “I don’t like purely using fabric, which is why I incorporate materials like metal, rocks, nets, even hair into my designs,” she says. “With costumes, it can be more surreal.” »

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Culture

INTERVIEW One look at the wardrobe in Grimes’ 2011 “Crystal Ball” music video shows just how effective Morales is at creating looks at once other-worldly and covetable. Shot in a Montreal train yard in the dead of winter, the haunting video has Grimes, 24, in hippie-goth getup reminiscent of Björk’s early career. “She wanted to become a hawk-like creature,” says Morales. “That’s why I used flowing fabrics and lots of texture like velvet, feathers and studs.”

Grimes, whose real name is Claire Boucher, credits Morales with transforming her into a style influencer lauded

by W and Vogue. “The whole introduction with Renata, it just immediately felt good,” says Boucher, whose signature look once consisted of running shoes and ripped T-shirts. “I hadn’t even thought about the idea of harnessing an image or working off fashion, which is something so big and beautiful, until I met her.”

Arcade Fire frontwoman Régine Chassagne used to frequent Morales’ boutique in Old Montreal and the pair became fast

FROM TOP: RÉGINE CHASSAGNE IN ARCADE FIRE’S MUSIC VIDEO “SPRAWL II (MOUNTAINS BEYOND MOUNTAINS)”; MORALES IN STUDIO; #77 (EDWIN TWELVE HEADS), 2012

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friends. Chassagne can often be found in one of Morales’ sparkly dresses—onstage, on the red carpet or in Arcade Fire’s interactive video, “Sprawl II (Mountains Beyond Mountains),” which features more costume changes than a live show, each more striking than the last.

Morales and Chassagne are collaborating once again, this time on a one-of-a-kind, limited-edition clothing line produced in Haiti. (Chassagne’s parents are from Haiti, and the band has been active in promoting earthquake relief efforts on the island.) Slated to launch this year, the eightpiece unisex collection will consist mostly of outerwear, like structured biker jackets. In typical Morales fashion, expect strong cuts, colourful imagery and unconventional materials like shards of metal. “It’s inspired by folkloric drawings,” says Morales. “It will be extremely ornate, all embroidered by hand by the women of Les Abricots [a region of Haiti].”

Beyond the atelier, a whole other set of creative talents brings Morales off the runway and into gallery spaces. She makes richly hued paintings and drawings influenced by the late Cy Twombly, and in July she has a solo show at the Sala Juárez gallery in Guadalajara, Mexico, where she’s working on an installation to include paintings, wallpaper, ceramics and costumes. Earlier in the summer you’ll find her at Old Montreal’s newly minted Phi Centre—a multidisciplinary arts venue—as guest curator. From June 5 to 15, she’ll take over the building with a pop-up shop featuring her own wares and those of other Montreal talents, as well as special live music performances. “Every night will be a party,” Morales says, hinting that she’ll be asking some of her long-time collaborators to take part. While there’s no doubt Morales loves fashion, she says,“I’m an artist first and a designer second.”

PHOTOGRAPHY: CHASSAGNE BY CAROLINE ROBERT; MORALES BY GEORGE FOK FOR PHI-CREATE

“I’M AN ARTIST FIRST AND A DESIGNER SECOND.”

FASHION MARCH 2013