Nasir Mazhar (Q3474)
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Nasir Mazhar is a fashion house from FMD.
| Language | Label | Description | Also known as |
|---|---|---|---|
| English | Nasir Mazhar |
Nasir Mazhar is a fashion house from FMD. |
Statements
Although he was tediously taciturn post-show,Nasir Mazharexpressed himself during it. This collection was an extension of his ongoing development of an almost ceremonially stylized, extravagant sub-variety of sports-technical wear with overtones of bondage and recreational self-constraint.Some of Mazhar’s men were bolstered by being holstered into harness-like belts and slings usually used to center the weight of backpacks, here used as an aesthetic device. More finely bound were his women in cutaway tracksuiting. Mazhar dug holes: There were large irregular contrast color panels in shiny nylon tracksuiting on men, which on women were left empty to show the skin beneath them. What looked like linen crochet was used in crop tops, tank tops and tracksuits. The gilets and shorts with poppered pockets at interesting angles and faux functionality galore looked satisfyingly military-industrial complex, while Mazhar’s luridly colored furs added a gutsier luster.
11 June 2016
To raise Nasir Mazhar’s hackles, just say, “streetwear.” He palpably snarls at a word he feels comes laden with an implicit marginalization. That might just be a little oversensitive. Yet he delivered a comprehensive rebuff to any such marginalizers—real or just perceived—in a collection peopled by imagined clubbing characters as richly cast as their clothes were diverse. The Darth Vader bucket-head looks were attention grabbing, if stagey. Much more pragmatically memorable was a fitted tracksuit considerately ruched to inflate the man within. Dance floor lingerie for men and women, liberally strapped and worn over pulled-down denim, was effective podium provocation.With the exception of some ironic white piping and two feathered arcs around his name on a logo sweatshirt, the collection was all black—Mazhar said he was taking a sabbatical from color. In photographs this inkiness will swallow up detail, which is a shame because there was a lot of it; the intricate folds and layered construction on many of these looks gave the illusion of technical function both tough and pretty. There were tangible nods to old-school woolen Yukon workwear rendered in nylon, a knowing hat tip to clubbing codes past in a shawl-collared jacket, and even hints of Jacobean jerkin in his gilet shapes for men and women. Itisstreetwear—sorry, Nasir—but that’s to belittle neither the medium nor the exuberant invention of this collection.
8 January 2016
Knowing that Nasir Mazhar's father passed away a few months ago made it impossible not to notice that the collection he presented for Spring was almost all black. And while the designer said both that he "felt empty" and that he had wanted to accentuate the masculinity of the models, it was hard to shy away from the clothes' fiercely aggressive and hard-hitting stance. Sometimes they were positively militialike, with camouflage tracksuits and "tops" (if you could call them that) that looked a lot like gun holsters.The first model combined a facemask straight out ofMad Max: Fury Roadwith dancehall-style accessories and a revealed muscular chest. Well, why not? It sure made for a striking look. Mazhar explained how he had strived to flatter the masculine form—and these models did have forms aplenty—but also revisit many of his brand's core pieces. In a way, Mazhar was summarizing his label's trajectory up until now, and the designer explained he felt like this was an end in some way. "I don't want to say the end of an era, it sounds too dramatic," he said.Trainers were a new addition to the usual caps and backpacks, showing that the next chapter of Nasir Mazhar might be more of an evolution, rather than a revolution. Which is probably smart, since Mazhar himself noted that it had taken people eight years to fully catch on to even his most iconic accessory, the Bully cap. It now sells out each season, but it points to the fact that the fashion press, demanding change and new ideas, often pushes young designers to move into new territory before they have found their audience.If the opening wasMad Max, the closing look was something all together different: a tracksuit of scrunched black fabric that made the male body look cushioned—its hard muscles softened. Add to that the sweaters and shorts made of rubberized pleats and the impression of aggressiveness started to fade. What remained was a collection that dressed up as a backwards-glancing and introspective, monochrome affair but, in fact, showed how this designer's real shtick is innovation.
12 June 2015
Nasir Mazhar wanted to present a 24-hour wardrobe for his guys, with all the gear that the men who are into the Mazhar look could want. Backstage the designer stressed that all pieces were equally important; in fact, there should be "importance in your wardrobe and there should be importance in your life." In other words, things should be taken seriously.There were some seriously fly looks here, to be sure—tracksuits in oily silk nylon or pneumatic jackets that looked like blown-up blue Bubble Wrap. For the club-ready outfit? Jacquard, of course, which was not new for Mazhar, but still looked pretty stunning. Zipper detailing gave white pants a scarred look, revealing a blue lining, while a green mesh knit was a first for the designer. Mazhar claimed this collection was his notion of normal. Was it a tardy comment on the whole normcore debate? Probably not.It was nice to see sportswear that didn't try to be anything else, but instead aimed at a better version of itself. Often when luxury meets sports another story unfolds that tries to treat the sportswear element as a side dish rather than the main course. Here you felt that the answer to the question of what clothes you'd buy if you had more cash was simple: Exactly the same ones already in your wardrobe—only better made, and in more expensive fabrics. "I'm not a crazy conceptual designer," Mazhar said. "These are just clothes you want to wear."
12 January 2015
"A bit sexy, a bit madam, a bit sporty, a bit sci-fi." Nasir Mazhar's own description of his womenswear for Spring 2015 was pretty definitive. Earth women and matriarchs were his inspirations, but he spun those notions from here to eternity—or maternity: There was a definite emphasis on fertility.Another starting point might have been dissection—clothes taken apart and reconstructed in a sensual, skeletal form, midriffs and thighs bared. The chiffon bell-bottoms suspended from a garter belt were, Mazhar said, "ABBA meets Cher." But there were cloaks and holsters and metal coronets that suggested militant queens of outer space as much as earth mothers. Mazhar has no fear of a head-scratching cross-reference—no other menswear designer has name-checked Henry VIII—so here he seemed to be defining a new tribe: aliens crossbreeding with dance hall girls, with some ragamuffin in the mix. And cleverly, every single thing was clearly signposted so our extraterrestrial visitors wouldn't for one minute doubt they weren't on planet Mazhar.
13 September 2014
Nasir Mazhar is the very definition of a local fashion hero. His audience is the giveaway. They're more than fans. (London is doing this sort of thing better than ever—look at Meadham Kirchhoff or Craig Green or KTZ.) "It's inspiring to have followers," Mazhar said after his men's show. You could see why, when there were so many acolytes eager to wear whatever he sent their way. Even more so that they're an increasingly international bunch.Mazhar rose from the U.K. garage scene eight years ago, and the fierce tribalism of that world still defines him. The physicality of garage, its furious branding and co-opting of high-performance sportswear details, energized his show. The way he incorporated backpack details, for instance, was as ingenious as the Bully cap, which was—and still is—Mazhar's highly original signature piece. But with this collection, he also latched on to the show-off-iness of a garage crowd to great effect. He claimed he was thinking about the richness, the excess of royalty, so pristine white sportiness was steadily suffused with royal blue and gold and metallic jacquards that looked like brocade. Mazhar had one reference point for his appetite for opulence: Henry VIII. Nowthat'swhat you call an original thinker.
16 June 2014