Austrian designer and a recent graduate of Royal Academy of Fine Arts Antwerp, Annemarie Saric draws on the streamlined shape of cars
Introducing New Beginnings, a new series of mini Q&As spotlighting emerging designers, in the wake of Craig McDean and Katie Shillingford’s shoot for AnOther Magazine Autumn/Winter 2020.
AnOther Magazine: What are your hopes for the future?
Annemarie Saric: I hope the way we adapt to the current issues emphasise empathy and respect for one another. I also hope that out of these uncertain times we will be able to improve and grow.
AM: What is the thinking behind your work?
AS: I researched concept cars and their streamlined shapes. I wanted to translate the stiffness and the shine of cars in my collection. In that sense, I decided to work with stretch and sheeting systems in order to make the garments stiff, which made the body more simplified and enhanced certain parts. I also thought about the concept of a dress or garment, which is almost always a tube. Approaching a garment in that way and seeing it as a geometrical shape, creates a stripped-down version of what a garment is. So I worked in a quite rudimentary way, designing shapes with little or no detail. Besides the tube as a base for my garment, some of my silhouettes are just a simplified version of a rectangular pattern, which becomes a three-dimensional shape through applying incisions.
AM: What three words would you use to describe your approach to fashion?
AS: Specific and general.
AM: What does community mean to you?
AS: Being surrounded by like-minded people that learn, help and challenge each other and treat each other with love and respect.
AM: What community did you grow up around? How did that shape you?
AS: I would consider the friends I went to high school with and the people I met through them, the community that I grew up around. I went to an artistic school which was a really beautiful experience. I feel very lucky to have spent so much time around those people, because I believe that through them I built the base of my approach to fashion. We are all still in touch and it’s fascinating to see how everyone is changing, but still manages to inspire and influence each other.
Follow Annemarie Saric on Instagram here.