Art and Culture
Created in 2004 by the IMG, under the creative direction of Colin McDowell and with the support of Red Bull, the challenge of Fashion Fringe is to re-invigorate the fashion industry in Britain. Fashion Fringe is looking for cutting edge, iconoclastic talent in design and creativity to continue the tradition Britain has long been famous for.
Fashion Fringe looks for the designers of the future - the ones who will pick up on what Vivienne Westwood, John Galliano and Alexander McQueen have done and take fashion forward to new heights.
In 2007, on its fourth immensely successful year, the British Council London and the British Council Central and South Asia are going to be part of this event. Each of the four finalists of Fashion Fringe will visit Bangladesh, Kazakhstan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan to draw inspiration for their new collection. This could include collaborating with crafts people, employ traditional techniques or commissioning fabric. During their visits, the designers will be charged with finding a young protégé from each country who will travel to the UK in August and September to work with them to develop the catwalk collection. The protégés will stay in the UK for six weeks to work with the designer and meet contacts in the creative campaign and their home country.
This was disclosed at a press conference organised by the British Council Bangladesh at Hotel Sheraton on June 11. Richard Sunderland, acting Director of the British Council Bangladesh, Nikki Rowntree, Fashion Fringe, Dejan Agatonovic, finalist of Fashion Fringe, Will Sorrell of the British Council London and Nazzina Mohsin of the British Council Bangladesh, spoke on the occasion.
The visiting members from the UK said, "Earlier in the year five design workshops launched the British Council's New Silk Road campaign in the region, each focusing on the transformation of heritage into contemporary expression. Fashion Fringe - New Silk Road - is the next phase in an ongoing 3-yaer project, which aims to promote the value of design in the region. The New Silk Road will refresh the image of central and South Asia to audiences in the UK and will offer the opportunity for increased exchange and dialogue between all countries involved. The New Silk Road arts campaign will expand to include other art forms at the end of this year." This is a high profile event on 'London Fashion Week' schedule where more than 350 journalists, fashion critics and top designers are invited to view the designs, they also said. Renowned designers, buyers, senior press and fashion academies collectively form Fashion Fringe's International Advisory Committee, chaired for the second year by the international designer, former Creative Director of Gucci and style supreme, Tom Ford.
Speakers said, "Advisory panel includes Alexander McQueen, Anna Wintour of Vogue, Claudia Croft of The Sunday Times, Dolce and Gabbana, Vivienne Westwood, Massimo Ferretti, Muiccia Prada, Floriane De Saint Pierre, Frances Corner of London College of Fashion, Grita Loebsack of L'Oreal Paris, Hussain Chalayan, Jeremy Langmead, Joan Burstein of Browns, John Galliano, Katie Grand of POP, Luigi Maramotti, Marc Jacobs, Natalie Massenet, Robert Forrest of Fashion Entrepreneur, Suzanne Tide-Frater, Stuart Rose of BFC, Tiffanie Darke of The Sunday Times, Anne Pitcher of Selfridges and Zac Posen." Fashion Fringe is supported by the Centre for Fashion Enterprise, Creative London, IMG, L'Oreal Paris, Mayor of London, Net-A-Porter, Red Bull, Style, Superdrug, London College of Fashion and Uni Designers, they added.
Colin McDowell
Colin McDowell is one of the most authoritative fashion commentators in the world. The author of sixteen books, he is Senior Fashion Writer for The Sunday Times Style section and founder of Fashion Fringe, the project dedicated to seeking out and supporting the fashion talents of the future.
He is an accomplished presenter and broadcaster. He is visiting professor of the London Institute and also at the Royal College of Art in London. He is a regular contributor to radio and television and his recent books include Fashion Today, a visual look at the past 50 year of fashion and also the official biography of Ralph Lauren. Other biographies of leading international designers include Galliano, Manolo Blahnik and Jean-Paul Gaultier.
Dejan Agatonovic
Dejan was born in a small town in west part of Serbia where approximately eight present of women are involved in fashion industry. Since very early childhood, drawing and fashion obsessed. At the age of eight, he started producing a huge number of fashion sketches in different techniques and separated them into collections.
Eventually he moved to Belgrade and with a big desire from his family studied and qualified in dentistry. But never wanted too give up fashion so at the same time he attended different art schools completed pattern cutting courses.
He soon realised there was only one path for his in life and started the University of Arts, Belgrade where he studied stage costume and fashion design and after five years full time studies he graduated with a first class BA in Fashion Design. As a student, he created his own label and presented collections at Belgrade Fashion Week. Over the following two years, Dejan worked for different ready to wear companies and successfully maintaining his own brand and gained essential business knowledge through this experience.
As many students Dejan had a dream to attend the famous MA course at the Central St Martins and followed that dream after being offered a position on the MA course he managed to save some money and with a lot of support of his family moved to London.
During the course, he won Lancome Colour Design Award, which helped him to finish his final MA collection and present it at the London Fashion Week in February 2006. He graduated in 2006 with distinction.
Upon graduating Dejan was offered a job for Balmain in Paris and Alberta Ferretti in Italy while negotiating a designer position with Stella McCartney, but decided to stay focused on the development of his personal style and his own brand. Once in a while he does freelance work.
© Copyright 2003 by The New Nation
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