Vogue meets New York Fashion Week’s next-gen star, Maryam Nassir Zadeh

By Julia Hobbs10 September 2019

Soulful fashion with a meaningful storyline has become a potent signature for Iranian-American designer Maryam Nassir Zadeh. Ahead of her New York Fashion Week show, she speaks to Vogue about the close-to-home inspiration behind her latest collection, and why we’ll all be channeling the MNZ brand of “mermaid chic” for SS20

With an emphasis on handpicked fashion that has a story to tell, it’s little surprise that New York-based designer Maryam Nassir Zadeh’s New York Fashion Week show is a firm favourite for Vogue editors in need of seasonal inspiration with soul.

For SS20, she turns her attention to the sea, with a collection that tunes in to the power of nature and returns to a sense of home. Rather than models, Nassir Zadeh casts friends to wear her designs, a theme that’s more important than ever this season. “I want to go back to my roots,” she says, “with my muses being my biggest inspiration.”

Here, Vogue speaks to the designer about her inspirations, ahead of her NYFW show.

What is the direction for the SS20 collection?

“For this season, the inspiration was taken from the sea and home and family. We took a lot of direct inspiration from the sea—plants, shells, seagrass and various iridescent, metallic and translucent textures. A little bit less obviously inspired by the sea are the woven surfaces, marbled textures, patchwork with nets, lace and foil, which is something new for the work. The mood of the collection is drapey, fluid silhouettes. I always do a combination of something feminine with something more masculine and clean, so there will be soft shapes and asymmetry with graphic bodycon. I was really excited about the Seventies safari theme of autumn, so I’m carrying that on a bit, but I’m going to fuse it with chic mermaids.”

Your accessories have a cult fan base of their own—what should we be looking out for on your SS20 runway?

“For the jewellery aspect of the collection, I worked very closely with glass master Gennaro Pepe, taking direct reference from the Mediterranean Posidonia plant, which only exists on the seabeds of Ibiza and Formentera—two places that I have a lot of connection to, I’ve been going there since I was a kid. The name Posidonia is derived from Greek mythology and is inspired by Poseidon, the god of the sea. It’s one of the largest organisms in the world and [one hectare of Posidonia] produces five times more oxygen than a hectare of the Amazon rainforest. When the water is clear, you can tell that the Posidonia is healthy, because it can’t grow when it’s not clean. Gennaro himself is based in Formentera and he packs my jewellery with dried Posidonia plants.”

Did you plan an inspiration trip to the Mediterranean this summer?

“My summer wasn’t really planned, but it feels like it was very personal to the collection in an unconscious way. I didn’t spend as much time in New York as I’m starting to realise that there are other places that have become home to me. I spent a bit of time in LA, which has always been the epitome of home to me, but I was also in and out of Paris a lot this summer, where I now have a base. From there, I went to the South, exploring Cassis and Marseille. For the last part of summer I travelled to Formentera and Mallorca, where I return to the same homes each year as part of a summer pilgrimage.”

You’ve spoken before about the personal importance of “handpicked” dressing. How does this influence your designs?

“How I love to dress is often handpicked. I take a lot of inspiration from vintage clothing and things where you can feel the soul of the pieces. That also goes for the people that I pick for the casting that wear my clothes; and the references to the sea for this collection. The overall message [of my brand] is minimal dressing and effortless, handpicked layers, with style and quality and an authentic story – the things that you adorn yourself with, but that really have a story to tell which is coming from a deeper place.”

You’ve often cast your friends in your catwalk shows, which shares a unique insight into your own world. What is the story behind your casting for SS20?

“I really felt strongly about the casting for this season because the theme is home and community and family. I want to go back to my roots, with my muses being my biggest inspiration. For the last few seasons we were testing the waters of having more of the collection shown on models, to see how the pieces would respond, and it was a little bit heart-breaking for me because the whole point of why I love doing shows is that I love seeing real people in the clothes. My friends helped me to get started and they’ve always been a part of it—they were sprinkled throughout the last few seasons, but this season there’s going to be a stronger emphasis on my MNZ family, the people that have always been there and a handful of the newer people in my life.

“I’m super proud that I’m going to have one of my favourite stylists in the show. Her name is Delphine Danhier, she was my first stylist and really helped defined the MNZ style. I love her so dearly as a person, I’m so excited to have her. I also have another newer friend that I’m very inspired by, Lily Gavin. She’s a fine artist and also an actress, one of her features, Giants Being Lonely, just debuted at the Venice Film Festival. I feel lucky that my friends will take part.”

Do you think that NYFW is becoming more open to emerging talent? Are there any new designers you are championing this season?

“There is an undercurrent of things moving and changing. ALL-IN, an underground studio and magazine will be holding their show in my store on Tuesday 10 September. The line is called Bror August and I feel like their work is some of the most original and exciting I’ve ever seen, I really believe in them. August Vestbø, the designer, uses found vintage garments, collaging them into one-of-a-kind pieces that look like paintings. It feels refined, but very artful. We’re going to be doing a special shoe collaboration for their show.”