Nashmin 
MM: Can you introduce your brand and yourself in a few sentences?
My name is Maxime Edward, I’m a Belgian, I originally came from the Philippines. My brand reflects slightly austere esthetics, can be said to be a touch theatrical with structured cuts and dynamic looks for men and women while looking for moderation between sobriety and fantasy. All this whilst hoping to achieve a ‘high fashion’
MM: Can you describe your creative process?
Everything is spontaneous. My creative process depends on the mood of the day. I like to sketch in the beginning, to give me a direction, but at the end it becomes totally different. It’s like an evolution. And all the ideas are growing up step by step. I do need pressure to engage into a process.
Sometimes all my collection starts from a color, a texture, a fabric.
By the way, everything is made by myself. Patterns, cutting, sewing.
MM: Where do you find inspiration in your day-to-day life?
Everywhere; Art, architecture, observation of people and details of the environments all around me, photography, iconography, dreams, video game, movie, figure,…
MM: What kind of questions do you ask yourself when you begin creating a collection?
Do I have time? Whatever, I’ll do it.
MM: How has your work evolved since you began your own label?
My label exists since this year, but I create capsules collections since I was graduated in 2014 from my fashion school. I did internships: Maison Natan in Beglium (the royal family’s designer), and Alexandre Vauthier Haute couture in Paris.
At the beginning I only worked on women designs. Then my best friend asked me to create for him a fur coat and i got good feelings with menswear. My style became more sportswear and street, even for women, but I kept all the references and identities from my experience and attraction of haute couture looks.
MM: How do you find working as a designer in Belgium? Has the culture/surroundings affected your design aesthetic? Do you feel connected to your home?
Belgium is a small country and we are a lot of designers. It’s pretty hard to find his own place.
Culture in Belgium is about “Art nouveau” architectural style, surrealism and minimalism. I don’t want to stay confined to my home culture but I’m trying to be open-minded to the rest of the world.
MM: What sparked your interest in fashion design?
I’m originally interested in producing and directing movies but when I was 15 I met the “Devil wears Prada” at the movie theater. It was like a revelation but not in a serious way. After getting some information, I decided to start fashion studies.
MM: How did you learn the business of fashion?
Learning Business? By myself. I’m only into designs and creation. The business is a complicated part for me but I do my best to understand how the fashion industry works.
MM: What is your favourite part of being a designer? What drives you to design?
It’s a passion. I like all the steps of my job, even pressure and white nights. But I really like the pride of being able to present something that I created with my hands.
MM: What is the inspiration behind your S/S19 collection to be showcased at Vancouver Fashion Week?
The collection ” UCHRONISM” is inspired by a vision of the Human species evolving in a total harmonic way of life. Not as an idyllic future but as an alternative reality of the present day. Harmony is all about mixity, eclecticism , coexistence, acceptance and balance between economy, ecology, biodiversity, technology, beliefs, languages, esthetics, beauty, … Key word is universality.
The collection is not about duality, but coexistence. A straight line and a curve; bright and darkness; natural and technical; soft and textured; sport and classic are mixed.