Label it the runway blues, but Guyana Fashion Weekend (GFW) 2’s Friday night opening failed to appeal; it was a night of fashion without the usual glitz and expected buzz.
It was a line-up of largely fresh talent– some designing only as long as three months — but rarely anything exciting and different.
There was certainly promise in the infant collection of twin brothers, Shawn and Shurlan James, which opened with a black and white dress with ruffles from the knee-down, completing the somewhat gothic look with a wedding veil and gloves. A review of their collection dubbed ‘Diamantes’ may find that most of what it offered is seen too often on the racks in stores, and on the backs of women everyday. Still, it was a fun collection to watch. Perhaps next year they will create that wow effect that was missing.
It was difficult to tell who easily had the best collection for the night though there were a few worthy candidates. Even the audience — scantily gathered — did not offer any opinions.
But if the night did indeed belong to one designer, it was the young Andrew Harris, who fittingly closed the show, offering up a matured male line of mostly khakis. His neat line of cargos, boxers, pants and shirts showed detail and a keen focus on the male contours. He opened the line showing off tiny boxers on two chiselled models who were oiled and dabbed with glitter; it was the wake-up moment of the night.
To his credit, Harris’s line called, ‘No Boundaries’, managed to take people beyond the tents erected at the Georgetown Cricket Club (GCC), to a place where the fashionable Caribbean man lives and breathes presumably wearing khakis all day, or is at least sleeping in one of those boxers. It was an exciting line that was deservingly applauded, and coming off of Carifesta X Fashion Focus where he had his first break-out moment it was fun to watch.
Maybe Harris will be shifted from opening night to closing night at the next installment of GFW because he is ready for a fitting stage to receive him and for a wider audience to view first hand what he is doing.
The afro-centric designs of Trinidad’s Rodney Alexander, which are incredible, soaked up a second dose of local admiration, and for those who got a taste of the collection during Carifesta it was a satisfying repeat. Alexander celebrates the African spirit in his designs that incorporates motifs and stunning hand-painted work, in addition to unique materials.
As customary with any fashion event, the bikini had its countless runway moments beginning with the bold new collection of designer, Lori-ann Jacobs that she called, ‘Golden Enchantment’; a lot of shimmer but the captivating effect was just not there.
A few of the designers showed bridals, dishing out from the accepted to the “I wouldn’t be caught dead in that”. Though it sometimes is a matter of taste and personal choice the majority of the bridal-themed pieces did nothing but raise questions about their inclusion in the line-ups.
The designs of Rishma Persaud and Donette Brotherson were among those that can be singled out as fresh and new, and both women have only been on the scene for a short while. While Brotherson went for sexy cuts and edgy styles ranging from evening dresses to casual cargo pants, Persaud unleashed a hot collection with Indian and Western influences.
The finale of the fashion weekend is tonight when the bigger names and the bolder, classier collections are to be unveiled, and if there is any recovery to be had it is likely to be on the night when the curtains go down.
