On Fashion Identity and Diversity
Fashion unites! It is a form of art, after all. One that can take all the differences in the world and put them together; it lets you know about other cultures while can make some communities and people identify with its values.
Should be no boundaries in fashion and this can be noticed lately in the changing of the demarcation line existing till recent times: London-Paris-New York-Milan. Because we are all different and heterogeneous: humans are multicultural and different. Nowadays we travel a lot, we make contact with so many cultures and arts!
The Fashion Capitals are Pushing Away Their Boundaries
We are paying more and more attention now to different parts of the world, that is sure. Ones already promise to change the panorama of international fashion in the future.
It is very important for fashion evolution and not only to look beyond the epicenters of this art, yet without totally defocusing on them. We live in a different millennium, in an increasingly connected world, very diverse.
The most important international catwalks are already represented by the work of designers of different origins, not specific to fashion lately: Russians, Brazilians, Indians, Chinese, Pakistanis, Israelis, Ghanaians, South Africans, a melting pot of cultures that want to express their own identity in this globalized world. For instance:
- Brazilian designers Isabela Capeto, Anunciaçáo, and Karlla Girotto;
- Indian designers Manish Arora and Ashish Gupta;
- Russian designers Nina Donis, Denis Simachev, Alena Akhmadulina, Igor Chapurin
- Chinese designer Blanc de Chine;
- South African label Sun Goddess.
Well, nothing is accidental, as from the beginning of the 21st century India and Brazil, Russian and China (the so-called BRIC nations) were countries in full economic development, taking position also in the world of fashion.
Fashion should transcend frontiers, to keep in step with the symbols of our times. It should be related to craftsmanship, hybridization, sustainability, innovation, research, luxury, new systems of production, exuberant richness of cultures.
Fashion is about Tradition and Learning about Other Cultures
These new-culture designers proudly export the best of their tradition in the form of luxury brands. Other different-culture designers fight to keep haute couture out in front, such as renowned brands like Viktor & Rolf, Alber Elbaz for Lanvin, Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel, Josep Font to Spaniard Paris haute couture.
There can be noticed new directions regarding textile research also. This can be seen in the work of Helen Storey in Great Britain, whose highly original way of fusing science and fashion is carried out in the work of designers finding alternatives to textiles in recycled garments, such as New Yorker Susan Cianciolo, Brazilian Karlla Girotto, and the inimitable Maison Martin Margiela, whose „Artisanal” line attempts to inject new life into obsolete garments and objects.
British Timothy Everest and Nail Barrett, North Americans Thom Browne and Craig Robinson, Dutch of Hindu origin Jeroen van Tuyl, and Ghanaian Joe Casely-Hayford are some designers who, from an innovative perspective, view the masculine wardrobe with a tailor’s eye. So men’s fashion takes roots within a predominantly feminine panorama.
What is about to come next? We cannot predict, but be sure it will be awesome and thrilling to discover!