Italian fashion to figure on Seoul runway

f you noticed leggy Korean fashion models in jeans strutting down a makeshift stage at Seoul Plaza (the green lawn in front of City Hall) yesterday, wait till they’re dressed to kill for a luxury Italian fashion show at 7 p.m. tonight.
The show, titled “Seoul under the Stars,” is organized by the Italian Embassy and the Italian Culture Institute, together with the Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Seoul Fashion Design Center. It is the highlight and finale of a three-day event celebrating Seoul Citizens Day, which was Thursday.
The Mayor of Seoul, Lee Myung-bak, and the Italian ambassador to Korea, Francesco Rausi, will host the open-air event, which promises to feature high-end Italian brands, including Versace, Etro, Enrico Coveri and Gianfranco Ferre.
The Seoul Citizens Day event kicked off with a live concert, followed by a fashion show featuring up-and-coming Korean designers. According to Na Wong-chen, manager of the Industry Policy Division of the Seoul Metropolitan Government, the joint Korean-Italian fashion show held in the heart of Seoul signifies the city government’s support for the development of fashion in Korea, especially in light of the fact that it comes just in time for the start of the semi-annual 2005 Spring/Summer Seoul Collection in early November.

by Ines Cho