Recent
times have seen a shift in this trend, with the international stage embracing
the cleaner lines of prét-à-porter over OTT haute couture.
The
economic downturn and consumer dissatisfaction about outlandish and impractical
designs have been blamed for this fashion shift.
Case
in point: during her reign as Miss South Africa, Tansey Coetzee wore a
high-couture David Tlale creation to the South African Music Awards. The
backlash she received for the blue monstrosity haunts her to this day. The
dress was the same showstopper that received nods of approval from fashion
fundis at Fashion Week.
So
where should designers draw the line between constructing garments that satisfy
arty fashion gurus and fashion buyers looking to get some ready-to-wear stock
into their boutiques?
This
year the director of SA Fashion Week, Lucilla Booyzen, says they have invited 40
independent retailers to scrutinise each of the collections and interact
directly with the designers at the event.
So,
in effect, there is more pressure on the designers to impress the buyers in
hopes that their collections will be stocked by a retail store or boutique.
According
to Gina Waldman of the fashion label Two, “avant garde” is a modernist term.
“The term is actually really outdated. In these times, things are invented from
others. Our designs come from the media, fashion, cultural situations, who we
are, who buys our clothes. So avant garde is not a term that would come into
play in Two designs.”
True
enough, Two is known for its simple – some say boring – designs. Their current
collection is inspired by “the prevailing economic climate where there is a
deliberate application of paring down, thrift and clear, clean lines.”
This
is in stark contrast to fashion maverick Clive Rundle who recently showed his
“Marie Antoinette returns to Paris after attending a lesbian wedding in Africa”
collection to an appreciative audience at the Arise l’Afrique-à-porter Fall
2010/2011 in Paris.
His
themes are usually as eccentric as his collections. The current one is called “A
Lesbian Wedding with an Italian grandmother’s washing instruction
attached”.
His
clothes have been described by some as architecture in motion, while others say
they embrace chaos. The man behind the “chaos”, Rundle, maintains that if one is
exhibiting their designs, they need to make sure it’s worth the effort.
Rundle
believes most designers feel under pressure to produce commercially applicable
items.
“Buyers
collect designs at fashion weeks to copy them for their stores. If I design a
simple dress, a buyer can just copy it and sell it at a fraction of the price
and I lose out. Make items that are difficult to replicate,” he says.
Sandhya
Lalloo, a lecturer at the University of Johannesburg’s fashion department,
believes designers are forced to go commercial to live off their trade. “It’s a
pity because the calibre of students we get at the university dream of becoming
the next Issey Miyake and create the most avant garde clothing in the
industry.
“But
once they graduate, they learn there’s no platform for that,” she says.
Lalloo
suggests the industry create a platform where commercial and avant garde items
run parallel to each other so designers can show their creativity.
“After
all, what is the point of a fashion week? Is it to show designers’ creativity or
sell commercial clothes?” she asks.
Last
year’s Elle New Talent finalist, Anisa Mpungwe of Loin Cloth & Ashes, says
when she first started, she felt obliged to design the most outlandish garments
with intricate embellishments and stitching just to show what she could do. “I
was not even thinking along the profit lines. However, I’ve grown and it is time
to start thinking about what is good for my business,” she says.
However,
Waldman, whose earlier collections have included leggings, insists “the avant
gardist designer does not care what people wear. They usually have a narrow look
at what fashion is and make clothes for their own usually indulgent
selves.”
Popular
menswear designer Ephraim Molingoana straddles the fence, saying he would rather
design unique but wearable clothes. “When I introduce interesting elements to a
garment, a man’s man like Robert Marawa has to say, ‘I want that’.”
Opinions
on the issue are as varied as designers’ collections. But think about it: what
would a Clive Rundle or David Tlale show be without drama?