Into its fourth instalment, the annual Digital Fashion Week (DFW), once again takes puts on a top show at the Capitol Theatre. Since 2012, DFW Creative Pte. Ltd’s brain child event – Digital Fashion Week – has brought the most outstanding local fashion designers from Thailand and Singapore into the limelight at its annual fashion celebration in both Bangkok and Singapore.
Setting itself apart from other fashion shows, DFW stakes its appeal on its strong presence in social media platforms and a live streaming online presence. Exposed to the world via the world wide web, 11 fashion shows and 11 fringe events spanning 6 days kept the days packed with high brow activities, seeing media and industry personalities in attendance which, further contributed to the glitter at the glitzy events.
Lian He Zao Bao opened DFW with an SG50-themed collection from 11 local designers (Afton Chen, Eliza Yeo, Gilda Su, Josiah Chua, Max Tan, Mun Foong, Samuel Wong, Tang Weilun, Amos Ananda, YouYou and Zhou Jun) together with selected entrants from MDIS, NAFA and Raffles Design Institute. The designs ran the gamut of possible inspirations from avian to downright zooey, providing the audience with plenty of material for cellphone photography and conversation.
Hot favourite, Amos Ananda’s offering was one of the more accessible creations. The styling was decidedly more rough-and-tumble, but approachable. The details in brass from conspicuous zippers and ring tabs cut a strong contrast with the sporty jacket, slightly reminiscent of motorcycle wear. The outfit boasted strong lines and an equally strong presence. Underneath, a more feminine take on the masculine jacket paired with it prevailed. Two versions were created, one with a playful mid thigh skirt and another with a sensual collar bone revealing boyish romper with low crotch that ended at knee’s length.
Of the collections debuting on the runway, a mad-hatter take on couture were the flamboyant designs of Gilda Su. Channelling kampong chicken meets plucked turkey, I was a little unconvinced of the male ensemble. The chickadee in pink was to me much more endearing and somehow worked. The right girl (read: pretty who can get away with murder), would look adorable in the fluffy flamingo pink party dress. A definite statement piece, this is not prêt-à-porter but, instead, modern art rendered on a costume canvas.
A little less haute couture and a little more bas, designer Josiah Chua departed somewhat from his manga motivations to exhibit a touch of East Asian classic – the origami. His work exhibited an elegant symmetry of geometric shapes standing out against a subtle, weathered whacky print in subdued tones of the primary colours. Accenting the otherwise simple zen-like purity of Josiah’s basic design are more origami-like embellishments in bolder colours in striking hues, positioned to resemble cravats or the thick swath of ribbon at the back of a Japanese kimono.
At the closing show of DFS, Max Tan had a second opportunity to showcase his work. A rising star in the fashion industry, Max is inspired by the duality of opposing factors such as shape, size and gender. He describes his work as maximising minimalistic ideas, speaking a complex language that results in details blown out of proportion.
Layering, texturing, evocative themes inherent in the colours are the tools he wields in his Spring/ Summer 2016 collection. The tribute to memories of growing up in Singapore are also very apparent. Layering is used to good effect to break up recognisable shapes to create a point of interest.
Visually, it piques interest and curiosity. The loosely billowing fabrics, Indian ink black against rice paper white, and pyjama stripes all hark back to an Asian theme that begs familiarity and yet the designs are fresh enough to require a second look to recognise its origins. The two matching light blue striped man-lady pair designs struck me immediately, leaving me with an inkling of what the composition was paying tribute to, but not so strong as to stop me from looking at it from a different angle and teasing out a second opinion. As Max explained, the inspiration was derived from observing people at a local coffee shop – a confirmation of my initial gut feel.
The night ended on a high note, with the glitz and glamour expected at the end of the runway.
