Marie-Hélène Airoldi
CREATIVE BIO:
Marie-Hélène Airoldi is an emerging Franco-Australian fashion designer dedicated to empowering women through her designs. Deciding at the age of 10 to become a fashion designer, Airoldi went on to commence her Bachelor of Design at the Whitehouse Institute of Design at just 18 years old.
Airoldi is most inspired by her French roots having lived in France at a young age and being raised on the language and culture. She aspires to reinvigorate the world of feminine couture-level garments and establish a respectable place in the international fashion industry.
DESIGN STATEMENT:
Centered around France’s motto of Liberty, Equality and Fraternity, Airoldi’s graduate collection is a tribute to her French heritage, created through only taking inspiration from French designers.
The set-up for Airoldi’s collection will center around three looks, each focusing on an aspect of the previously mentioned motto with Liberty being the front and center hero look, with Equality and Fraternity being the framing “semi-heroes”. Airoldi has designed to these three themes in a way that connects back to her passion of female empowerment, most notably making this a womenswear collection.
Liberty has been designed to fit into the category of “Little Black Dress”, referring to freedom, this idea focuses on the sense of having individual autonomy, meaning that the design for Liberty is intended to be elegant yet powerful.
Equality has been designed to have elements of men’s professional workwear paired with skirts to convey the idea that a woman can wear feminine clothes while still holding a position of respect and power in the workplace. Finally, Fraternity is the idea of a “brotherhood”, Airoldi has taken this idea and turned her interpretation into the idea of the sisterhood. Rooted with ideas of the French ballet and cabaret culture, this is the softest of the three main looks exploring a purer side of classic femininity. Tied together with pink satin and black lace, Airoldi’s collection strives to reignite a sense of French elegance.
