Shy, always dressed in black and with a nervous yet friendly smile, Juan Manuel Morilla, “Anel Yaos”, is more than just a promising young designer in the Spanish fashion world.
With the Best New Andalusian Designer award already under his belt, he has already shown at the Valencia Fashion Week twice, including this September when his Rohumine collection won the Best ZONE D Collection award (for emerging designers). With this award, Anel will show his work as part of the official VFW catwalk for the next season (as well as receiving a generous sum).
As opposed to the natural order of things, this designer, recently graduated from the fashion school Moda CEADE de Sevilla, doesn’t want to design clothes for anyone, or work in an atelier.
Anel Yaos claims that the goal of his designs is none other than to exhibit another world, his world, full of mystery and ambiguity. In his own words, “I simply want to express everything inside of me. Many times there are people like me who don’t express their feelings. Perhaps this is how I do it”.
Like it or not, designs by Anel Yaos leave no one in the front row unmoved. As he says, “Maybe some of the clothes that I design are wearable but, of course, this isn’t my main intention. What I want is to give a performance, to show what I’m capable of doing with shapes and fabric”.
The dream of this Sevillian designer is to be a great stylist and creator of fashion editorials, captain of an enigmatic and extravagant universe. And he’s already taken the first step with the online publication BIZARRE, where you can find some amazing photography, done by his colleague Patricia Quinta (La Petite Chambre Fotografía).
Even his creative process is different: “When I design something, I never think about whether or not the piece is for a man or a woman. I think about an ambiguous being, sexless, mysterious. I never show their full face, and later I decide if the piece will be for a man or a woman”.
(Photo: www.valenciafashionweek.com/es)
With his supporters and detractors (as happens with most geniuses), the work of Anel Yaos has already captured the attention of the North American market and he is ready to take the next step. We’ll be here to see it.
Head Photo by Carmen Rincón (Carmen Rincón Fotografía).
Translated by: Michael Padilla
