Marimekko Celebrates Charming Collaboration with Landon Metz at CPHFW
Marimekko and L'OFFICIEL invited Copenhagen's creative class to Apollo Bar to toast the Finnish House's Spring/Summer 2023 collection.
Copenhagen Fashion Week is in full swing, and the Danish fashion denizens have been decked out in their brightest pinks, oranges, and greens all week long. But it turns out that the Danes aren’t the only ones who can flaunt bold colors—enter 70-year-old Finnish label, Marimekko, who made quite the splash fêting its Spring/Summer 2023 Collection last night.
Marimekko Creative Director Rebekka Bay eschewed a traditional runway show and opted for an intimate family-style dinner in celebration of her latest collection. In truth, the veteran designer (Bay was the brilliant mind behind some of your favorite minimalist brands, like Cos and Everlane) knows how best to show clothes. In this instance, she chose real people, albeit some of Copenhagen’s chicest It girls and creatives, to wear eye-catching floral dresses and pajama-like sets to an alfresco evening at Apollo Bar, a perennial favorite of the Copenhagen fashion set.
In fact, the intimate dinner felt a little more like a reunion of old friends, or an extended family coming together to celebrate a momentous occasion. Designer and influencer Sophia Roe skipped in just as the sun was setting, as it had been a busy day for her—she presented her first collection at CPHFW that morning, and she was running on pure adrenaline. Taking in the sea of blues and pastel pink hues, she mused that the collaboration by Bay and Brooklyn-based artist Landon Metz for Marimekko “felt just as organic and genuine as the ambiance created in the open courtyard. It is always a pleasure witnessing two artists finding a common language, which has turned out beautifully in the print and collection.”
Roe was referencing the capsule collection within the Spring/Summer 2023 Marimekko collection, which Bay created in collaboration with Metz. Bay had admired the artist for many years, starting from the time that she was living in New York. Metz is revered for his use of abstract shapes that dance off the canvas and that transcend space and borders, which Bay deftly added to Marimekko’s architectural silhouettes.
The common language between the two may indeed be laughter, as both Bay and Metz had a hearty chuckle as Bay regaled her guests with just how long it took for her to convince Metz to collaborate. In the end, the wait was well worth it—the capsule collection of eight pieces of clothing and additional accessories is a beautiful exercise in color.
