#Lookbook – Mansour Martin, the artistic duo of the Belgian designers Mansour Badjoko and Martin Liesnard, becomes MWORKS: a global brand dedicated to sustainability, fashion and art. Conceived as an “open hub”, the label will welcome artists, garment makers, experts, but also other designers, to think together about a fair and respectful fashion. A new step in the development of their adventure, launched in 2019.
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“MWORKS will be the logical continuation of Mansour Martin and will represent a universe that brings together all our convictions and our creative desires. The idea is to move away from an eponymous, egocentric concept and to reinforce the notion of exchange and sharing that we hold dear. To bring together under the same name all the people we invite for our various artistic and research projects.” Martin Liesnard, Artistic Director of the brand.
New collection, Fall Winter 22/23 entitled “Hybrid Manners”
The collection was conceived as a poetic hybrid of our movements and contemporary clothing. The outerwear pieces play on proportions with a hooded poncho split by a zip and a coat with wide sleeves, structured by slits. A ‘midnight blue’ satin workshop suit, tightened at the waist. A whimsical tailoring suit consists of collarless jacket and trousers with a skirt wrapped around it. The volumes of the hooded shirt have been redesigned into an ultra large version, in camel striped poplin. A colour that echoes the vegan leather of the winter shorts with buttoned slits and an overshirt with multiple pockets. The gabardine trousers are modular. The green is punctuated by white and black inserts on uniform clothing. The six-colour logo is hand-painted by artist Aurélien Delahaies, with whom MWORKS has already collaborated, on natural jersey pieces.
As part of its “COWORKING” programme, MWORKS partners each season with an independent workshop to promote know-how and create collaborative clothing projects. This season, the brand is working with Les Trois Tricoteurs: a social and solidarity-based start-up located in Roubaix, founded by textile engineers from ENSAIT. Specialists in knitwear, they use technological innovations discovered in Japan that allow the creation of completely seamless knitted pieces. The result of the project is a loose knitted jumper textured with whimsical stripes made with Italian merino wool yarn in electric blue and black anchor versions.
Artistic collaboration with the talented illustrator Jeanne Detallante
This season’s print was created by Jeanne Detallante, a French artist and illustrator based in Brussels, who has worked with Prada, Miu Miu and numerous publishing projects. Jeanne created a pattern that blends brutalism and art nouveau, inspired by malachite stone, emerald and marble.
MWORKS: A panorama of European sustainable solutions and innovations
Each MWORKS collection is a compilation of sustainable solutions sourced from across Europe. A meticulous work of research, meetings and mixing of innovations carried out for over 3 years. Today the brand has about twenty partners: start-ups, craftsmen, historical textile manufacturers located in France, Belgium, Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland, Portugal…
The brand works with Nona Source (LVMH) to source upcycled fabrics. The jersey pieces are made of organic cotton and are manufactured in France. The printed organic cotton fabrics are developed in the Netherlands using an ecological printing process. The wools come from Italy and the corduroy from England. The buttons are French and made from natural or recycled elements. Some of the poplin and the vegan leather, made from 100% recycled nylon, come from Japan.
MWORKS also collaborates regularly with a vegetable pigment colouring workshop in Paris as well as with Ibaba, an embroidery workshop located in Rwanda that contributes to the social integration of women.
Discover the artist Jeanne Detallante: www.jeannedetallante.com / @jeannedetallante
Discover Les Trois tricoteurs: www.lestroistricoteurs.fr
Discover the artist Aurélien Delahaies: www.aureliendelahaies.com
Lookbook photos: Benoit Bethume @benoitbethume
Vidéo: Romain Claris www.romainclarisfilm.com
