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Backstage at JOÃO MAGALHÃES AW23 at ModaLisboa Core

Not just clothes: a collection of vibes

Opening the third day of ModaLisboa Core, João Magalhães starts by doing what he does best: inviting us into his world. Not intending to sell clothes, just vibes, João combines colours and textures in a total of seven looks that highlight the designer’s expressionist motifs and self-identity, while making a statement on conscious consumption.

Photography by Diogo dos Santos
Beauty by Antonia Rosa and team with Clarins
Hair by Helena Vaz Pereira and team at Griffe Hair Style with L´Oréal Profissional Paris
Styling by Ruben De Sá Osório

Words by Guido Avelino

When dissected, “shitty clothes for shitty people”—the hand-written text stamped on the T-shirts—sums up the core of his brand ethos: it’s raw and it’s made by one of us for one of us. João didn’t graduate from fashion school and there’s a special touch and a not-too-refined approach to his fashion perception: he creatively presents a commentary on society and its circumstances. Most likely, if we’re being honest, we might all be deemed “shitty” for one reason or another, but acknowledging it—or indeed proclaiming it across your torso—takes away the moral judgement and turns it into something light, poking fun at self-seriousness.

A deconstructed plaid shirt becomes an asymmetric skirt paired with an oversized neon hoodie, while denim jackets and trousers make the cut, dripping and drooling in paint, paired with the same plaid shirt, now worn as a top. On other looks, tailored kilt skirts are styled with white socks worn with holographic and paint-splattered clogs. Amazing as allways: the accessories by Brazilian born Lisbon based visual artist Marcos Hass Horn.

The beauty, by Antonia Rosa, is reminiscent of La Piel Que Habito, hiding [in]perfection and covering reality—allowing for the viewer to focus on João’s artistry. Inspired by sheet mask beauty treatments and her concept of “beauty with the power of gold”, she emphasizes beauty in process or the preparation itself, using a technique she’s been rehearsing for an upcoming ZOOT editorial. On the other hand, the rigid, picture-perfect bouffants created by Helena Vaz Pereira are cooked to completion. In conjunction with the full looks, the tidiness of the hairstyles, with their trippy Stepford-wives-on-the-go undertones, plays with assumptions of respectability and presentability.

Rather than creating a new reality, or escaping our own, João keeps striking us with new perspectives on how fashion can be innovative and, simply, fun.