StyleWeek Preview: Designer Maria Del Carmen Mercado

Thursday, January 13, 2011

GoLocalProv Lifestyle Editor Andrea E. McHugh

This Sunday, StyleWeek Providence returns with a handful of familiar names and healthy showing of new ones. Among the designers making their debut is Maria Del Carmen Mercado, a young and ambitious Dominican Republic native whose heritage plays a lead role in every piece that sashays down the runway. “Nature plays a big part in our lives. Our world is full of color and festivities; our culture is celebrated with things like music and food,” she says, adding the that part of her motivation during the creative process is “to introduce culture and bring people together.”

The Collection

Season’s Bliss, the title of Mercado’s collection, will debut at the Providence Biltmore on Monday, January 17 at 8pm, the second night of StyleWeek which also features designer Kara Wickman. “[The collection] started with a series of photographs I took through the year at the end of each season…Since it was a visual demonstration on most of the elements; texture, color, shape, and form, that I use in my collections, I decided to pick a picture from each group of photos as reference.”

Style from Scratch

As a fiber artist, Mercado begins by establishing a piece’s color story that will be told through the fabric, and processing each textile by dyeing, layering, weaving, and other methods from raw materials. “Then make my own original pattern without using commercial patterns, and then

cut and sew everything,” Mercado explains. “The most satisfying part of a piece is the hands-on, staring with just yardage of hand-dyed fabric then turning it into something wearable.” Mercado names Gianni Versace, Chado Ralph Rucci and Valentino as some of the designers she most admires.

Spreading the Word

Maria Del Carmen Mercado pieces have been featured in galleries throughout Rhode Island, including The Atrium Gallery, the Pawtucket Arts Collaborative and the RISD Museum of Art, and has a collection of scarves at Lola's Boutique in Providence. Though she’s been selling and exhibiting her working for years, StyleWeek has been an exciting adventure for the designer, who will also have a garment in Wednesday’s Go Red StyleWeek Challenge. The show, which will feature the work of 14 designers, will raise funds for the American Heart Association.

StyleWeek Providence takes place Sunday, Jan. 16 through Saturday Jan. 22. To attend the Go Red Challenge, visit www.styleweekprovidence.com/go-red-styleweek-challenge