Hi Huneybees,
The
PARCO next NEXT show featured eight designers from the project,
including Pauline Lim of PAULINE.NING, who graduated from the
programme in April 2012. The other labels from PARCO next NEXT’s
most recent intake, 20:TWOTHREE, Episene, evenodd, LION EARL,
MASH-UP, MILS and QUAINTHOOD, began retailing at PARCO Marina Bay on
April 14. To know more about the labels, check out my PARCO next NEXT article here.
The latest in homegrown fashion rocked the catwalk when designers
from Singapore’s fashion incubator project PARCO next NEXT made
their return to the Audi Fashion Festival (AFF) last weekend.
Launched on 31 March 2010, PARCO next NEXT is a fashion design incubator project with a mission of nurturing promising local design talents. Its retail zone at PARCO Marina Bay is a 6,000-square-foot one-of-a-kind space that features specially curated selections of Singapore’s most exciting new labels in a showcase encompassing a range of diverse and evolving fashion concepts, from avant-garde to high street chic.
The PARCO next NEXT project helps young designers hone and transform their creative ideas into successful and competitive businesses via an extensive 18-month creative and business mentoring programme under the guidance of industry veterans such as David Wang, Nic Wong and Daniel Yam. The project’s successes include collections that are being sold at various boutiques in Singapore, as well as others that have won regional design and fashion awards.
 |
| With a few friends and Parco designers here to support their fellow designers. Alexandria Chen (Purple Dress), Lion Earl (On my Right) and Saloni Rathor (Lady in lack dress on the right of photo). |
Left: William Chong of Wil.Liam and Right: Rick Hung of 2HB
The
newer designers put forward their Spring/Summer 2012 lines, and the
models also carried bags from Veira by Tan Wey Ling, which is
entering its second year with PARCO next NEXT. Alumnus PAULINE.NING
showcased a collection specially created together with Ideas Empire
and the Museum Label earlier this year. Ideas Empire, via its
collaborative workshop, IE X, teams with artists and designers from
various creative disciplines to create interesting and
unexpected cross-collaborative concepts.
Gilda Su of RÊVASSEUR, wearing her own label. The ribbon bag will be launching soon.
This
is the second time PARCO next NEXT’s designers have been a part of
the Audi Fashion Festival and the Asia Fashion Exchange, Singapore’s
largest fashion event. Its designers are amongst a select group of
homegrown designers being featured at the Audi Fashion Festival,
alongside international labels such as Zac Posen, Mugler and Yeojin
Bae.
So, let's get the show started!
MASH-UP
MASH-UP is an independent, offbeat street-wear label inspired by everything from ethnic heritage and pop culture to cinematography. The brainchild of LASALLE College of the Arts fashion graduates Daniela Monasterios Tan, Nathanael Ng and Shaf Amis’aabudin, MASH-UP is a manifestation of their common love for music, partying and fashion.
Expect the unexpected with Totemania, a collection that blends the 1990s and “Girl Power” with influences from North-West Coast Native American culture. Narrative totem poles serve as a reference for wolf-faces, bear masks and raven beaks that can be found in varying doses in all the pieces. The 12-piece collection uses denim, embroidery and patchwork in chromatic colours.
MASH-UP's runway show had local celebrity model, Sheila Sim wearing their dress with their statement totem styled denim dress as well as some local fashion bloggers doing the walk. The highlight would be the adorable little girls blading her way out and the chained dress to end it.
MASH-UP is an independent, offbeat street-wear label inspired by everything from ethnic heritage and pop culture to cinematography. The brainchild of LASALLE College of the Arts fashion graduates Daniela Monasterios Tan, Nathanael Ng and Shaf Amis’aabudin, MASH-UP is a manifestation of their common love for music, partying and fashion.
Expect the unexpected with Totemania, a collection that blends the 1990s and “Girl Power” with influences from North-West Coast Native American culture. Narrative totem poles serve as a reference for wolf-faces, bear masks and raven beaks that can be found in varying doses in all the pieces. The 12-piece collection uses denim, embroidery and patchwork in chromatic colours.
MASH-UP's runway show had local celebrity model, Sheila Sim wearing their dress with their statement totem styled denim dress as well as some local fashion bloggers doing the walk. The highlight would be the adorable little girls blading her way out and the chained dress to end it.
20:TWOTHREE
Cousins Genevieve and Jamie Goh present 20:TWOTHREE, an androgynous fashion label for both men and women that they have developed with a cheeky disregard for taught rules.
Clarity in Blindness is a collection that plays on visual obstruction and obscurity through the clever use of all-black fabrics in various textures and density, peppered with flashes of neon. Repeated layering and soft draping is prevalent in this collection, serving to break shape and form while appearing both haunting and youthful. Central to the inspiration for this collection is a vintage pair of octagon-shaped glasses.
MILS
Fashion design graduate from LASALLE College of The Arts, Sunny Lim, is the designer behind MILS, a luxury menswear label providing alternative apparel for the contemporary gentleman.
MILS
Fashion design graduate from LASALLE College of The Arts, Sunny Lim, is the designer behind MILS, a luxury menswear label providing alternative apparel for the contemporary gentleman.
Inspired by the strong yet fluid movements of a male dancer, MILS' Spring/ Summer 2012 collection explores asymmetrical forms in suits that follow softly structured lines with detailed tailoring. Showcasing clean functionality and a keen sensibility of the male body, the collection features accents of cognac leather amidst monochromatic hues.
What an interesting way of having the model danced out, ballet-ing his way down the runway...
For
Sunny Lim of MILS, who recently returned from showing at the
Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Australia (MBFWA) in Sydney, it is a
chance to broaden his commercial reach. He is hoping that through
AFF, as well as his booth at AFX’s tradeshow platform BLUEPRINT, he
will be able to catch the eye of international buyers.
“The
response to my show in Australia was really positive, and I was
approached by several buyers, including one from New York. Nothing is
set in stone, but these potential opportunities for expansion are
really encouraging. I hope the response in Singapore will be as
good," said the 24-year-old designer.
QUAINTHOOD
QUAINTHOOD is a contemporary fashion label for women by Temasek Design School graduate and former air stewardess, Joy Ng. Ng’s Spring/Summer 2012 collection, Deflect, re-invents wardrobe staples with an emphasis on menswear-inspired details and flattering cuts in a color palette of neutral tones of white, grey and blue. The collection entices the wearer to deflect trends and instead, draw on her own instincts and personal style to create outfits that are utilitarian and versatile.
QUAINTHOOD is a contemporary fashion label for women by Temasek Design School graduate and former air stewardess, Joy Ng. Ng’s Spring/Summer 2012 collection, Deflect, re-invents wardrobe staples with an emphasis on menswear-inspired details and flattering cuts in a color palette of neutral tones of white, grey and blue. The collection entices the wearer to deflect trends and instead, draw on her own instincts and personal style to create outfits that are utilitarian and versatile.
LION EARL
Founded by fashion design graduate Lionel Low & architecture undergraduate and freelance designer Hariz Lim – LION EARL challenges the boundaries of both fashion and the arts.
Taking cues from urban geometry and architecture, The Tree Lady is a collection that plays on the transition of clothes from a raw, fluid state, to a more structured one, reflecting the process of urbanization. Peplum is a main feature in this collection of monochromatic vests and skirts peppered with dashes of fuchsia pink and electric blue. The label brings a refreshing change to womenswear with highlights like irregular hemlines, hand-dyed buttons and sharp cutting.
Taking cues from urban geometry and architecture, The Tree Lady is a collection that plays on the transition of clothes from a raw, fluid state, to a more structured one, reflecting the process of urbanization. Peplum is a main feature in this collection of monochromatic vests and skirts peppered with dashes of fuchsia pink and electric blue. The label brings a refreshing change to womenswear with highlights like irregular hemlines, hand-dyed buttons and sharp cutting.
As the collection The Tree Lady suggests, branches were seen on the heads of the models. There were all branches handpicked and painted by Designer Lionel Low. Totally love the touch, wonder if it heavy though?
evenodd
Stylist, photographer and a self-taught designer, Samuel Wong, heads menswear label evenodd. His pieces are inspired by the prim and proper style of gentlemen from days of yore and reinterpreted with a contemporary twist.
This collection titled Night is the New Spring features Wong's collaboration with local textile designer, Edward Chan, a 25-year-old fashion textile student from LASALLE College of the Arts. Chan’s print design, inspired by the myna bird commonly found in Singapore, brings a slightly darker mood to the evenodd aesthetic. What results are smart, understated pieces in a palette of black and white. Look forward to myna-print jackets and button-down shirts with leather panels and buckle details.
Local Celebrity Nat Ho surprised the audience when he walked down the runway. He looked super sharp with his full blonde hair.
Episene
Behind Episene is designer Lee Yun Ting, who draws influence for her designs from art, history and philosophy to bring elements of the past and present together. A firm advocate of individualism and expression, Lee designs pieces that are strong, bold and compelling.
Inspired by Marcel Proust's novel "In Search of Lost Time", this androgynous womenswear collection plays on the idea of involuntary memories that merge the past and present. The pieces combine draping with strong tailoring to juxtapose older memories against the greater clarity of the present, in a monochromatic colour palette.
PAULINE.NING
Pauline Lim brings together contemporary fashion and traditional hand-crafted work in her urban ready-to-wear womenswear label.
PAULINE.NING presents a collection done in collaboration with Ideas Empire (IEX) and the Museum Label. Inspired by a bejeweled Chinese porcelain bowl with Turkish origins, the colour palette for this collection is predominantly black and white. Accents of gold foiling on organza, brass elements and prints made in the likeness of porcelain are replete in this collection.
Earlier
this year, several PARCO next NEXT labels, including MAE PANG and
PAULINE.NING, were featured in a pop-up store in Shibuya PARCO
curated by Yuji Yamamoto, the son of renowned Japanese fashion
designer Yohji Yamamoto.
“In both Singapore and Japan, PARCO has been a strong advocate of local and emerging talent in fashion by providing platforms for its designers to get greater exposure,” said Mr Shuichi Hidaka, PARCO (Singapore)’s managing director.
PARCO next NEXT is a joint initiative between PARCO (Singapore) Pte Ltd and the Textile & Fashion Federation (Singapore) (TaFf), with the support of SPRING Singapore. For more information, visit www.parconextnext.com.sg.
