Fashion Week finds its stride
Phillip Lim’s collection was inspired by the exhibition “Picasso: Mosqueteros” at the Gagosian Gallary in New York.
As always, SFW is working to elevate the event to international status and gain global recognition for Seoul as a fashion mecca. At the forefront of these efforts are the 43 top Korean designers whose collections lined the catwalks over the eight-day period.
One designer worth watching is Kwak Hyun-joo. She collaborated with the creators of the animated character Pucca to create new designs with an edgy feel, and 22 of the 80 pieces she showed featured the character.
“I want to have my clothes be worn worldwide and create garments that people will actually wear and love,” Kwak says. “I hope the collaboration with Pucca and my new interpretation of her will enable this to happen.”
The show began with a short animated film of a lean and mean Pucca as a fierce female soldier dodging fire to save her boyfriend. The clothes in the collection have a strongly heroic feel, with hot pants styled with accessories like oversized bags and plastic handguns and bold slits along the neckline.
Kwak Hyun-joo’s collection was inspired by strong female icons like Charlie’s Angels and Bond girls.
One aim of SFW is to help young designers like Kwak make contact with domestic and foreign buyers. Buyers were treated to a new system of online ordering, real-time updates and a Web site featuring the participating designers’ collections.
Event organizers also made an effort to narrow the gap between consumers and designers by offering presentations and seminars before and during scheduled events.
This year, big names in the fashion business like Woo Young-mi and Lie Sang-bong contributed to the presentations, along with 12 other industry representatives.
Chang Kwang-hyo, a designer who is already well known to the Korean public through his role on the TV series “Hello, Franceska,” found his own way to reach out to potential buyers.
“The main concept behind my collection is ‘seasonless,’ in response to the economic downfall that we have been experiencing. It was inspired by the book ‘O Zahir,’” Chang said. “I wanted to make sensual pieces that are very wearable and at the same time innovative in terms of eliminating the boundaries between casualwear, formalwear and sportswear.”
His collection features softer blues and reds along with classic colors like white and black. He showed his flair for the sensual in the soft tailoring in jackets and kilts that also had beaded or patterned details.
With regard to the new systems set up by SFW to generate greater global recognition for local designers, he said, “Korean designers are very talented. It’s just the lack of capital and support from corporations and the government that is preventing Korea from producing a world-renowned designer.”
However, there is no denying that Fashion Week is attracting attention. The fierce competition to get a foot in the door at one of the year’s biggest fashion events is just one sign of its growing reputation.
Event organizers even admitted that the competition to win a spot on this season’s schedule was very intense.
Chang Kwang-hyo’s collection was inspired by the book, “O Zahir.” The designer uses natural colors for easy-to-wear items.
The competitive environment was due not only to the increase in the number of marketing opportunities offered this year, but also rising recognition of the event’s significance from global fashion industry figures.
Over 110 fashion representatives from more than 20 countries were invited to Seoul for the event, including agents from magazines such as Italian Vogue, the U.K.’s Plastique, Japan’s NHK, France’s Citizen K, the U.S.’s Fashion Snoop and Argentinian Bazaar.
Participating buyers included Bon Marche, Seven New York and Vertice.
Ha Sang-beg’s collection incorporates spring colors and overly styled frills into clothes that replicate basic street wear.
Other participating designers from overseas included Damir Doma from the Paris Collection and Richard Nicall from the London Collection.
After the lights went out and the catwalks were cleared at the end of Fashion Week, the Seoul Metropolitan Government announced that it will continue to provide practical support to the fashion industry.
It is planning to launch a fashion show in a sartorial hot spot like New York in February next year and will provide additional funds for talented designers to promote Korean fashion on the global stage.
By Hannah Kim Contributing writer [estyle@joongang.co.kr]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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