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When the fashion runway hits Tanah Abang
Showtime: People crowd to see Itang Yunaszâs show at in the heart of the marketâs Blok B
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Showtime: People crowd to see Itang Yunasz's show at in the heart of the market's Blok B.
On one typically hectic day at the Tanah Abang textile market ' the largest of its kind in Southeast Asia - prominent fashion designer Itang Yunasz revealed more than 100 looks for Ramadhan and Idul Fitri.
In the heart of the market's Blok B; fashion enthusiasts, buyers, the media as well as everyday patrons gathered round the runway, looking at the trendy yet modest collection that Itang, back at Tanah Abang for a fourth year for a show, offered through two ready-to-wear lines.
'Kamilaa', a women's collection, saw Itang dress up about 35 models for two sequences. Meanwhile, for the men's collection, 'Preview', Itang offered about 50 looks.
For the Muslim holiday collection, which this year coincides with the global spring/summer season, Itang took 'Puspa Ragam Andalas' as his main theme.
The pieces offered rich motifs and colors from popular tenun or songket woven fabrics from Aceh; Padang, West Sumatra; and Palembang, South Sumatra.
Itang, who studied at the Academic of Fashion in Rome of Italy in 1979, applied the traditional fabric's motifs into his pieces through digital and rotary printing techniques.
'I've been inspired by the richness of songket or tenun from Sumatra Island. But for this collection, I focused on the ones coming from Aceh, West Sumatra and Palembang, because most Indonesians are already familiar with the motifs,' Itang told media prior to the show.
The 'Kamilaa' and 'Preview' collections are all about floral and geometrical motifs, wrapped in bright colors such as blue, turquoise, green, yellow, red, pink and orange. The designer also applied his drawings on darker colors.
Itang complimented the colorful tones with simple yet elegant silhouettes, like a sweet H-line rumple skirt and A-line patchwork skirt.
Styling is an important feature of Itang's latest collections, especially in the women's division.
Itang styled some of his A-line kaftans ' typically the most favorite outfit for women during the Muslim holiday -- into volume blousons.
'The collection allows wearers to play around with their sense of styling,' said Itang.
The latest collection of 'Preview' deserves a big round of applause as it brings Muslim men's clothing to another level.
Applying digital printing of motifs on shirts, 'Preview' offers a variety in tops that are not only decent for Idul Fitri prayers, but also for daily use.
'I designed shirts with motifs that still look good for the office. These days, most offices allow their male employees to wear Muslim shirts on Fridays, right?' said Itang, adding that 'Kamilaa' and 'Preview' were intended for people of all faiths.
By staging the show at the market, Itang is bringing fashion and trends closer to his audience. He also was the center of attention ' as well as brusque sales.
'I know that many of our designers have been wanting to enter Tanah Abang, such a crowded market ' and I've been blessed to be able to open several stores here.
'I hope my kind of show will encourage other to do just the same, and we all can be successful together,' he added.
'Kamilaa' and 'Preview' items are all priced below Rp 500,000.
Itang said that 'Kamilaa' offers about 700,000 pieces a year, while 'Preview' is even larger.
'I know that as ready-to-wear local brands we cannot beat international lines like H&M or Uniqlo yet, but, at least, we can fill the gap: those two brands don't produce modest fashion,' said Itang.
Photos by JP/AWO
