Part of the 20th anniversary Sao Paulo Fashion Week coverage

When it comes to minimalist style, many appear culturally conditioned to kneejerk towards Scandinavian design. As my earlier Copenhagen Fashion Week review discovered there is more than one way to crystallize a garment/look. Here are three Brazilian brands driving home a point that in a post-paris fashion world qualitative analysis of creative prowess spans far and wide. (Ok, an aside. Aside from legit aesthetic compatibility, I’ve chosen 2^nd Floor and Apartamento 03 and UMA for a chance to string that address label headline together… It is NOT good writing, ok. I just couldn’t help myself: it was too easy to pass up. Moth. Flame.) But no worries, no returns necessary, all three are wishlist-able keepers!

For Apartamento 03, Luiz Claudio turned to liturgical proceedings for inspiration yet these looks have no air of suffering, restrain, repentance about them. Designer turned out a collection described as “an impeccably Zen luxury.” Hmm… I’m willing to go along with that label. Monochrome is any monk’s best friend. The counter-balance of black and white ascetics often results in sharp tailored insights from within the gray zone of spirit-body connectivity. Instagram

Meanwhile… 2^nd Floor, a brand working since 2004 under a nondescript slogan “young, fresh and free”, proceeded further along the minimalist rainbow spectrum. Shades of tropical fruit harvest season – peach, papaya, mango – span the wardrobe staples revamped ever so slightly with a sporty touch before fragmenting into gamma-ray prints on cocktail dresses. Simple enough.

Designer Raquel Davidowicz welcomed menswear into UMA brand lineup by synchronizing gendered garment coding for coupled looks. “The idea is androgynous, but not unisex” said the notes. For my fashion taste buds, this ain’t the unisexxx of Apti Edziev coats, but then again… If we were to recognize gender expression as a spectrum (and we should, duh no brainer!), we must honor that some folks might be drawn to more fluid lines, others to sturdier parallels, and UMA treads gently in-between. Instagram

Check out also the fun-luv-tastic Amapo trainwreck, the theatrics of one and only Lino Villaventura and the botanical gardens on the runways!