!["[Style] is the way to express your essence to people."](https://media.cnn.com/api/v1/images/stellar/prod/160821215557-sao-paulo-styl-3.jpg?q=w_3088,h_2048,x_0,y_0,c_fill/h_447)
While Rio may have taken center stage recently for the 2016 Olympics, when it comes to style, southern neighbor São Paulo is regarded as Brazil’s fashion capital. Hosting the fifth biggest fashion week in the world, São Paulo is a leading force in South American fashion.
Having staged its 41st edition in April, São Paulo Fashion Week has been a platform for internationally-recognized designers such as Carlos Miele, Pedro Lourenço and Francisco Costa.
Speaking in Style’s Rio episode, Vogue Brazil’s editorial director, Daniela Falcão, admits that while Rio serves to cement fashion trends, it is in Brazil’s largest city that these ideas originate.
“We feel that São Paulo is where the trends are born, but really conceptual trends, because the strongest designers are based here,” she explained. “The trends are born here, but they come to life in Rio.”
The city is also known for its creative youth culture and, like any fashion capital, it is crucial to understand São Paulo street style to see how this filters into the industry.
Having captured the city’s youth and subcultures for the likes of i-D magazine, and collaborated on visual projects with various fashion brands, local photographer Hick Duarte was well-placed to document the laid back aesthetic of Brazil’s most stylish city.
