080 Barcelona Fashion Week SS23: An Overview

The 30th edition of 080 Barcelona Fashion Week ended on Friday evening after four days in which 23 national brands presented their latest collections.

After two years of being an online-only event due to the pandemic, the event returned to its previous physical catwalk format, presenting itself at the beautiful Recinte Modernista de Sant Pau in central Barcelona. This edition of 080 Barcelona Fashion Week was characterized by technological innovation, circular and timeless fashion for all body types, slow fashion, local production and of course international designs under the “Made in Spain” label.

080 Barcelona Fashion SS23 featured everything from red carpet looks to streetwear ideas designed to transform the street into an everyday runway, as well as swimwear presentations. The latest edition put the environment first and attracted national and international attention by not only showcasing a selection of national talent but also immersing the audience in the digital world with designer LR3 Louis Rubi presenting his new collection in the form of a presented an adventure that fused technology, art and fashion.

“Returning to a physical catwalk event was very stressful due to the live show aspect, but seeing the designs on the runway definitely made up for it all.”

Txell Miras, creative director of the eponymous label and attendee of 080 Barcelona Fashion Week

The program of this edition included established national brands: All That She Loves, Avellaneda, Custo Barcelona, ​​Eiko ai, Eñaut, Escorpion, Guillermina Baeza, Lebor Gabala, Lola Casademunt by Maite, LR3 Louis Rubi, Martín Across, Menchen Tomas, Reveligion, Simorra , The Label Edition, Tíscar Espadas, Txell Miras and Yolancris, as well as labels that made their debut in Barcelona such as Tíscar Espadas, Amlul, Habey Club, Is Coming, Larhha and the acclaimed Dominnico label. The return to the physical format has been somewhat nerve-wracking for both the established designers and those making their debuts, although most designers have prior experience with the format.

In the modern city of Barcelona, ​​the designers showed their know-how and were able to translate their multidisciplinary interests into unique creations that transported the audience into their personal creative universe.

Txell Miras at 080 Barcelona Fashion. Image: Kike Illanes

Migual Marín and Natalia Lorca were an example of this. The creative minds behind fashion label Larhha presented their SS23 collection for the first time at 080 Barcelona Fashion. Established designer Txell Miras, who has attended several editions of the event, created a sense of calm with the contrasting geometric shapes of her own SS23 collection.

LR3 experience: symbiosis between the real world and the world created by designers

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LR3 experience. Image: Alicia Reyes Sarmiento

As virtual reality takes its place in the fashion world, fashion labels are becoming increasingly interested in showcasing collections that are fully or partially digital. Spanish designer LR3 Louis Rubi’s new collection is a good example of this. The designs were presented in a multi-sensory experience consisting of three different scenarios, merging technology, art and fashion.

The disruptive fashion brand, which was founded three years ago, has the clear goal of “encouraging change in the fashion industry”.

The tour began in the digital world, entered by an orange room – LR3’s signature brand color – full of monitors with virtual reality goggles. Once inside this universe imagined by the creators, the tour began, accompanied by different avatars presenting the designs and guiding visitors through the different virtual scenarios of the experience. These ranged from a magical forest to a sea, a futuristic city, a labyrinth of infinite columns or a simple white room that you could physically visit in the second room of the tour, before enjoying the collection physically in the last room .

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LR3 experience. Image: Alicia Reyes Sarmiento

The collection was presented like an exhibition, suspended from mannequins that “floated” through the space, in the brand’s signature orange color. She played with volume, proportion and movement, with contrasting fabrics such as silk, denim, velvet, cotton or Guipur lace. Additionally, the designs featured prints with floral motifs mixed with cross symbols in a red to yellow gradient color palette.

Ethical and eco-friendly fashion

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The Label Edition at 080 Barcelona Fashion. Image: 080 Barcelona Fashion Week
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Eñaut/Tíscar Espadas/Amlul at 080 Barcelona Fashion. Image: 080 Barcelona Fashion Week

With his SS23 ‘Under’ collection, designer Eñaut wanted to highlight the importance of coral in purifying the air we breathe, while another designer, Tíscar Espadas, took a commercial risk with her collection, which is ‘neither winter nor summer, neither feminine nor ‘masculine’ but also handcrafted locally, just like that of label Amlul, which showcased a timeless wardrobe with pieces made in limited quantities.

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Dominic at 080 Barcelona Fashion. Image: Kike Illanes

The Is Coming brand, which attended Barcelona Fashion Week for the first time in a physical format, presented its slow fashion model based on a circular economy. Label Dominnico was the most talked about name on the second day of the event and also made its debut at this edition. The garments are characterized by careful tailoring, research into new fabrics and materials, sustainable processes and a futuristic vision of fashion.

080 Reborn

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080 Reborn at 080 Barcelona Fashion. Image: 080 Barcelona Fashion Week

In line with these sustainability principles followed by various fashion labels, Sant Pau also hosted the first 080 Barcelona Fashion second-hand show to send a clear message about reuse and sustainability, which is arguably one of the most pressing issues in the industry.

Stylists Fermin+Gilles showed that it’s possible to be stylish without sacrificing the planet. The outfits presented as part of the 080 Reborn section of 080 Barcelona Fashion Week were assembled using second-hand garments from participating local stores such as Humana, PinkFlamingo, Le Swing and Las Pepitas.

According to the Catalan Waste Agency, residents of Catalonia use around 22 kilos of new clothes per person annually, of which only 11 percent are correctly recycled.

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080 Reborn at 080 Barcelona Fashion. Image: 080 Barcelona Fashion Week

080 Reborn by 080 Barcelona Fashion is part of the Pact for Circular Fashion, an initiative that promotes the textile sector’s shift to a more sustainable model.

As part of the program of this edition of 080 Barcelona Fashion Week, which since its inception has been committed to innovation in the field of sustainability, there was also TexMeeting 2022, a presentation dedicated to new production models and the possibilities of recycling post-consumer fibers and using bio-based materials were examined.

A program that emphasizes diversity

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Simorra at 080 Barcelona Fashion. Image: Kike Illanes

This fashion week in Barcelona was also a milestone for body diversity, with models of different sizes, genders, origins and ages in the auditions, including model Lorena Durán, who received the Best Model award at the last edition of Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Madrid and diversity on the runway and defending the importance of self-esteem, and model Neus Bermejo walking the runway pregnant.

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Amul at 080 Barcelona Fashion. Image: 080 Barcelona Fashion Week

As the last edition has shown, 080 Barcelona Fashion Week is establishing itself as an open, pluralistic, multidisciplinary and international fashion platform whose main objective is to promote the culture of fashion and its connection with art and architecture.

This article originally appeared on FashionUnited.es. Translated from English and edited by Simone Preuss.

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