Nacho Lapeña Martín, better known as Nacho Lamar, is a fashion designer and entrepreneur born and based in the Aragonese capital, a city he says he feels “deeply rooted in.” He describes himself as a naturally creative person: “while other kids preferred football or video games, we preferred to use
Nacho Lapeña Martín, better known as Nacho Lamar, is a fashion designer and entrepreneur born and based in the Aragonese capital, a city he says he feels “deeply rooted in.”
He describes himself as a naturally creative person: “while other kids preferred football or video games, we preferred to use our imagination. We used to play at acting out characters from made-up worlds. We’d mute the TV and make up our own voices for the adverts. We loved drawing, inventing stories… I think that awakened our creative side from a very early age.”
With a watercolour artist for a mother, “from a very young age I was already visiting art exhibitions.” Anyone familiar with the young designer’s work will no doubt recognise that avant-garde, boundary-pushing quality so characteristic of the artistic world he grew up in.
It comes as no surprise, then, that he ended up studying at the Zaragoza School of Arts. “I had never been interested in any subject. I was good at humanities, very good at drawing, but I didn’t take it seriously. Around that time, when I was about 16, I started experimenting with screen printing. I built my own frame at home using a mosquito net as the mesh. The world of textiles drew me in. I liked to read people through their clothes. I had a gut feeling, I decided to trust it, and I ended up enrolling in a pattern-making and fashion degree.”
Years later, he went on to study fashion at university. “Before starting the degree, I was having a Vermut — Valdepablo, my favourite — with my brother-in-law, and he said to me: when you finish, no one is going to be waiting for you with open arms. That sentence opened my eyes. From that moment in 2017, an incredible adventure of hard work and sacrifice began. For many groups of friends, I became a complete stranger — I shut myself off in my own world to build something worth having. I wanted to go further.”
In his first year, he did voluntary work experience at an embroidery workshop while also joining the team at Me & You magazine. “I could have done my degree normally, passed my subjects and settled for the first job that came along — but no, I needed to wake up. That same year I took part in the professional team category of the Aguja Goyesca competition with my first collection: four outfits inspired by Goya’s bullfighting engravings. We won. That pat on the back makes you want to reach for more.”
In 2018, during his second year, he won the XV Young Designers of Aragon Award with his collection Legado XX. As if that weren’t enough, he also took second prize in the poster competition for the Fiestas del Pilar. “One day I plan to win the Zaragoza Fiestas poster — for myself and for my region. In 2018 we came second, and it left me with a bittersweet feeling. In a Champions League final, who remembers the runner-up?”
He completed his studies in Madrid, where he presented a new collection, Lamarismo, of which he says: “that project was left a little up in the air — the rush to meet deadlines, the constraints of a final degree project… those aren’t the best conditions for creating. And to top it all off, the pandemic hit.”
“I could have stayed in Madrid to work, but I wanted to come back to my home, to be with my family, my friends, my people. So my only option was to go out on my own. In September 2020, I registered the brand L’AMAR.”
In January 2021, he qualified to represent Aragon in a national fashion competition. “The madness started all over again — I had a month and a half to put together six very complex looks. I was up at seven in the morning and in bed at one. Sewing all day long. We went to Madrid, presented the collection, and won. Again.” (At this point it’s worth noting that he speaks in the plural even though he competes solo, because he sees his achievements as a collective triumph: “I have the help and support of my family and friends — without them it would be impossible.”) With Esto No Es Una Colección — an avant-garde project fusing contemporary art with catwalk fashion — he returned home with the National Fashion Award for Young Designers. A year later, he presented a new textile project, Esto No Es Una Colección ’22, at the Aragón Fashion Week held in Zaragoza.
“Today,” he says, “I feel like I haven’t achieved anything, that I’m still the same person. I still have so much road ahead of me — I can’t afford to relax.” What is clear, however, is that it’s a privilege to have talents like his representing our beloved region.
“Before we wrap up, I’d like to thank my family and everyone who has been with me along the way, because sometimes it gets tough. I’d also like to give a special mention to Fernando Marco, a sartorial artist from Calatayud who not only introduced me to the wonderful world of tailoring, but who — with his many years of experience — broadened my vision and knowledge of the textile industry. A great professional and an even better person.”
Thank you for sharing a vermouth with us, Nacho. We hope to see you back on the catwalk very soon. As far as we’re concerned, we’re ready for another round whenever you are.
