Alvaro Mars
What’s your name and where are you based?
Alvaro Mars. Born in Spain and currently based in Rome after many years living in London.
Can you describe your practice in a few words?
Visual delulu that happens to use the body as a canvas. Volume and colour as starting point to create fashion objects that are meant to tell a story and evoke somekind of emotion. Couture techniques out of context.
You describe yourself as having been sensitive to aesthetic stimuli from a very early age. Can you remember early moments that fascinated you as a child?
I guess that my early interaction with the arts was facing directly the blank paper with some oil pigments, my parents were quite quick at understanding my creative needs. The women influence by that time was probably one of my biggest fascinations, like my mum getting ready for a night out or my grandma doing her hair. Cinema and theatre were also a big part of discovering my own universe, I understood that the world was way more exciting than I thought.
Your fashion drawings as a child were already full of symbols and references, before you knew what fashion or designing was. Do any of these symbols still exist in your work today?
Definitely, it is actually something that I try to protect. For a big part of my process, I don’t have any idea of what I’m doing; however, It just comes to me naturally at some point. I have my own way of understanting proportions and colour, and it is something that I had since I was a kid; I don’t think I could create without this way of seeing and interacting with anatomy.
What do you think is central to your process that you want to translate into your collections?
I can see being playful as the main element of my practice, beauty from the unexpected is something that I geek out for. I do believe in the power of dressing up; in my mind there’s always this idea of the actor getting ready before the performance, that magical moment that makes you feel like you can be whoever you want to be, a moment of freedom. This kind of feeling is what I want to translate into the tangible. As for the process itself, I would say it goes from a maximalist stage where the structures are born to a more refined result where I try to balance visually all the chaos.
Your references are sensory and specific, for example the color red, the smell of salt, a fan moving, your grandmother spraying hairspray. Is there a common thread between the things you find yourself being drawn to?
I feed on what I have seen, what I have absorbed. I love authenticy and grace, I am very drawn to those little cinematic moments that provoke emotions. I guess it has to do with personal experience and romatisicing my own roots, I would be lying if I told you that the Spanish “lore” doesn’t fascinate me.
What do you think is one of your biggest challenges in the industry?
In general, I can’t complain; I’ve been lucky enough to experience moments that I hope to remember always. It’s true that many times, because of your youth, you’re not taken seriously, but I would tell you that my biggest challenge has been understanding myself and knowing how to live with uncertainty.
Is there a specific detail, piece or collection that you’ve worked on that feels especially personal to you?
In general, everything is kind of personal. I want my work to talk about me, not literally, but contextually. If I have to point out something maybe I can think about everytime I make my grandma part of my practice, that feels quite special.
What’s inspiring you right now, in or outside of fashion?
So besides my usual inspirational sources (literature, cinema, vintage, homoerotic photography), lately I’ve been really into objects in general, objects that I find at flea markets or are around me. I feel like as the time goes by, my inspiration gets more abstratct and random.
Where can people find you?
For sure on my instagram @alvaromarsinfo and webpage www.alvaromars.eu . I’m figuring out some stuff at the moment so stay tuned.
