BETTER TO PROMOTE TRADITIONAL INDIGENOUS PRODUCTS FOR UPLIFTMENT OF POOR COMMUNITY: Last months International Fashion Showcase saw more than 30 foreign embassies and cultural institutions present young design talent to a London audience comprising press, buyers and fashion aficionados. The Manila Wear showcase from the Philippines was the only one that highlighted how six designers incorporate indigenous sustainable materials into their designs. In addition, each designer had either a partnership with an NGO where profits are put back into community development, or was collaborating with local artisans and textile suppliers. While Manila is not generally known as an international fashion capital, it could become a leader in sustainable design processes, says Senen Mangalile, minister and consul general at the Philippine embassy in London. Philippines has a lot to offer in terms of creative designs, but also a model for sustainable partnership between designers and the local communities who supply some of the materials [the designers] use. The designers possess the creative talent to make work for an international market but at the same time, they help local communities who perform the work. With a rising middle class and a new generation of designers who are engaged with international fashion markets in a way their predecessors werent, the elements are coming together for a dynamic hub of Manila designers who combine inspiration from the tropical landscape that surrounds them with western design aesthetics.
Posted on: Thu, 06 Mar 2014 06:05:12 +0000
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