Innovation, experimentation and social commitment. These are three concepts that describe Tramando, the brand created by the Argentinian fashion designer Martín Churba. Since 2003, Churba has been changing the face of fashion, introducing in his designs not only innovative techniques in textiles but the participation of work cooperatives. Tramando was created thirteen years ago after Martín Churba parted ways with Jessica Trosman, his creative partner for five years. Both of them started the brand Trosmanchurba in 1997 which was crucial in the birth and expansion of Argentina’s author designers. The pair created their project based in their creativity and their special approach to textiles. What made Trosmanchurba internationally recognized was their work with textures, colors and prints which created one of a kind pieces. Trosman Churba expanded their business internationally and at the time the partnership between the designers ended, they sold their collections in Tokyo, London, Los Ángeles, New York, Miami and Kuwait, among other cities.
After the dissolution of the brand, the designer founded his own project: Tramando. Its aim is to be more than just a fashion brand. Its goal is to be a multidisciplinary project of design and experimentation. Aside from clothing, Tramando also has an interior decor line and a textile lab where the experiments with materials take place. The brand has a modern and avant garde aesthetic that combines futuristic elements with traditional ones, that recover the continent's native techniques, colors and textures. The vision of Martín Churba is to fuse fashion with expression and create pieces that tell stories.
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Photo by: Lobo Velar
However, what makes Churba so special is not only the fact that he develops a new approach to textiles for every collection, but the philosophy of the designer. Since the beginning of the brand in 2003, Churba has been developing new ways of producing that involves incorporating people from different paths of life. One of these ideas is a working cooperative which was opened in the early 00’s to provide jobs for people with low resources. From that moment on, the designer has been collaborating with cooperatives across the country, creating a work network that shows that fashion can be done consciously and can also awaken the desire to promote a change in society and the way we think about the industry.
Tramando transforms the concept of luxury and femininity. His pieces are deeply thought through, and each collection has a story behind it: ‘Bajoflores’ -a neighborhood of Buenos Aires- (S/S 2007) honoured Bolivian immigrants and ‘Sur, moda del fin del mundo’ -’The South, fashion from the end of the world’- (F/W 2012) was inspired by the body painting used by the aborigines from the south of the country. These inspirations are combined with modern silhouettes, often simple at first sight but with intricate construction details.
The development of Tramando’s collections is completely done by the design team: from the inspiration to the final product. In this process, Tramando’s Textile Lab plays an important role: this is where experimentation with different techniques and fabric treatments take place. Martin Churba has always been recognized for his innovation regarding printing, dying and other processes that are crucial in the originality of the final product. In 2012, the brand opened a store in Palermo with a small laboratory inside, so the public could be part of the creative process of the pieces. Tramando’s world is still one of the most interesting projects in national fashion: Churba has managed to create a universe from his ideas and to create special products that awaken our feelings and encourage us to experiment with new sensations.
