The modern influences could be seen in work from the hands of designers such as Adesagi Kierana, Era Soekamto and Widhi Budimulia.

Newcomer Adesagi Kierana presented his theme, “In Love With You Again”, exploring textured lace and tulle in strong, black and white tones, as well as striking red volume skirts and tube dresses, evoking a playful yet girlie look.

Platform shoes with killer-heels in multitude of color combinations such as checkered red and white, and silver with a splash of yellow were attention-grabbers.  

Era Soekamto displayed the latest in men’s and ladies’ fashion of Urban Crew in a show themed “Union of Galaxies”, combining edgy, futuristic artwork and threadwork details with a diversity of exotic cultural influences.

Urban Crew, a local ready-to-wear brand for youngsters, was founded in 1997 and operated by Era and Ichwan Toha, another designer, but is now owned wholly by Era.

The label was the pioneer of locally designed, ready-to-wear fashion lines in Indonesia as the market had previously been dominated by haute couture and deluxe, international ready-to-wear lines. The label disappeared in 2006 before making a comeback in 2009.

For the Spring/Summer 2011 collection, Era brought in a variety of hot pants for women and matched them with shocking pink tops and loose-fitting tops with metallic details.

High-waist skinny pants were also displayed with various tops, while the menswear showcased skinny pants, to T-shirts and jackets.

Widhi offered “Bohemian Luxury”, inspired by urban women desiring to look classy, glamorous and elegant, but practical and modern at the same time.

He displayed various silhouettes such as X-line, A-line, fitted and flared through a stylish pencil skirt, pants, a baby-doll dress, bustier, jacket and tank-top blouse.

Much of the woman’s fashion from Kanaya Tabitha’s label Kata brightened up the stage as the designer once again combined electric colors with soft, flowing materials.

Floral-print dresses in asymmetric cuts really showcased the models’ femininity.    

Other designers chose to utilize more traditional textiles, mixing them with international fabrics and turning them into stylish modern clothes.

Liliana Lim’s showcase “Weaving Serenade” explored the beauty of East Nusa Tenggara’s native silk called tenun, which was mixed with linen, Thai silk and raw silk.

The designer, who started her fashion career in 1994 and won first prize at the 1997 Young Designer Contest, did not forget her trademark of twisting and draping. The result was a series of simple, classic and very wearable mini-dresses.

“This is something that you can wear in your daily life. I also added Japanese origami and some gemstones as accessories,” said Liliana after the show.

Stephanus Hammy JP/P.J. Leo

The prominent Stephanus Hamy tried to regain the appeal of the ancient Javanese fabric gendongan, which tends to be rough and stiff, working it into a number of stunning ladies’ pieces.

As part of his high regard for the material, Hamy chose not to cut the fabric into pieces, but rather used it as selendang worn over the shoulders, capes, sarongs and layered dresses.

Yongki Budisutisna also went native in “The Touch of Nusantara” using the batik and songket of the Dayak people from Borneo. He accentuated it with retro flourishes of synthetic fur, evoking the fashion of the 1950s.

His color palette included dark green, terracotta, and purple, while the fabrics ranged from cotton and chiffon to velvet.

“The Story of a Leaf”, from Sutanto Danuwidjaja, took inspiration from pieces of leaves, while Tuty Cholid exploited the beauty of West Sumatran traditional clothing such as tunics and kebaya in her showcase, “Exquisite Nature of Andalas”.

Velentino Napitupulu — famously known for his haute couture creations — this time aimed at presenting traditional fabrics from his hometown, North Sumatra’s Toba batik, in a sequence called “Ethnician From Toba”.

In his hands, the traditional fabrics were turned into feminine, romantic clothes which were set against chiffon, silk and satin.

Pencil skirts combined with draped blouses and loose-fitting tops, while long wrap dresses were shown with sleeves or one-shoulder tops. The style was simple and clean, but at the same time feminine and chic.

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