An exhibit at the gallery area of Greenbelt 5 in Makati City is proving to visitors why 23 young fashion designers can proudly say they went to the same school as Martin Bautista, Michael Cinco, Joey Samson, Ezra Santos, and Oliver Tolentino.
The best graduating students of Slim’s Fashion and Arts School are putting their works on display from November 21 to 27, 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. This is the first time in the institution’s 51-year history that students up for diplomas are showcasing their creations outside the school.
Viewers can look forward to the results of the students’ final exams: the terno and the wedding gown. Some designers have combined the two, while another has come up with a winter terno.
Products from a draping workshop are also unveiled, as well as the collections of two of this year’s PreviewEmerging Fashion Talents: Li-J Eleazar and Nina Gatan. Included in the latter’s presentation is the pantsuit Marian Rivera wore on this month’s Preview magazine cover.
As a nod to the maestra of couture herself, Salvacion Lim Higgins (Slim), who founded the school with sister Purificacion, reproductions of some of her masterpieces were also crafted by the students specifically for the exhibit.
The pieces took three months to create, from concept to final product.
“It’s really inspiring seeing everyone’s work and (how) they’re really talented,” said Mary Camille Veloso, who is taking up both fashion design and dressmaking courses at Slim’s. “To be able to call them peers or even friends, it makes you want to be a better designer.”
Eleazar, who is now a teaching assistant for dressmaking, is proud to show her and her students’ works to the public. And she has much to take pride in, given the striking results.
“My inspiration was my dad. I thought about the things that are connected to him. I thought about golf, but it was a bit difficult (to accomplish), so I chose the butterfly instead. Whenever I see a butterfly, it reminds me of him. But since others have already created butterfly-inspired designs, I just focused on the shape of the cocoon,” she said.
The cut-outs in her dresses represented the pieces that went missing when her father passed away, while the bright colors stood for the happy memories she shared with him. The dark ones marked the sadness left in his wake.
All elements of a collection he would have been glad to see.
source: interaksyon.com
