A very exciting week for Australian Fashion. Last night the MBFF set in an historical and industrial backdrop runway that once functioned as a blacksmith’s workshop, now is Sydney’s Carriageworks Complex that’s normally home to the Eveleigh Farmers’ Markets. Kym Ellery was the events highlight and with very good reason. Ellery is currently the only Australian designer to have shown on the Paris Fashion Week schedule. While all the other designers are due to present their Spring ’2015 looks this week, Ellery’s AW ’15, already debuted in Paris in February. It’s impeccably cut, expensively made, original & beautiful — her coats in particular are, as we say in fashion, beyond.
Glennis Trail-Nash – Australian Fashion Editor for The Australian, and Elle Halliwell from The Daily Telegraph are few of the privileged to highlight some of our home grown talents that premiered at the Mercedes Benz Sydney Fashion Week. (Picture BY Getty Images) Other designers included Bec & Bridge, Aje, Maticevski, Alice McCall, Johnny, Watson X Watson and Gary Bigeni, also Toby Zerna just to name a few.
There has been some concern that our Fashion Industry has been struggling to define itself for some time now. In an interview designer Collette Dinnigan & Suzy Menkes, (two industry veterans) discussed that – aside from spotting a coat here or there – many collections seem to have become indistinct from one another and that a trend has been particularly pronounced that the MBFWA aren’t defining the seasons, begging the question is it autumn/winter? Is it spring/summer? Perhaps it’s resort?
Also left having srom shifted the schedule (originally from May) to April and now back to May again, as well as changing sponsors from Rosemount Wine to Mercedes Benz, it is fair to say that Australia’s Fashion Week has left many feeling confused. But it has been made official that as of May 2016, the event will finally be given a new lease on life; one that makes a lot more sense overall and one that will make it much more relevant within the international fashion calendar.
So with MBFWA’s new May date and a renewed focus geared towards resort, the event will finally have the chance to shine internationally. Local designers will be given the incentive (and the breathing space) to unveil their resort lines on local soil and the shift in scheduling should also serve to attract greater numbers of influential media and buyers from overseas. This, in turn, will lead to greater exposure for our homegrown designers and also a chance to establish Australia as a reputable fashion destination. Overall then, the future looks bright for local fashion.
Feast your eyes on these truly inspirational Australian Artists and their creative delivery:
