The next is now
On the eve of the Mega Young Designers Competition, I felt a sudden connection with its theme of transformation — I felt fat. It’s hard to be fat when you’re about to face Carla Sibal, Mega editor-in-chief, who just flew in from shoots and shows abroad, still as svelte as ever. Inside the Edsa Shangri-La ballroom, the mood was subdued yet striking. Though the stalwarts of local fashion seemed to have done away with flash, the general statement of style was still very much “Where is the future?”
The fashion show, of course, would beam us the answer. That the youth is the future is an understatement at an event like this. You can always count on young people for new perspectives and fresh looks. What the runway revealed were eight new threads of thought all too willing to be part of a cultural transformation. One tried to reinvent the barong, while another put a twist to the pambalot of sweets during Christmastime. All manners of dress diverging in direction — just the way new things emerge.
But a wayward direction becomes more magnificent if there is meaning. A few days after the show, I read the Mega YDC souvenir program and found some sense in all the style of Vanessa Ang’s collection. She explained, “Stricter cultures evolving into more open, transparent ones — this, I believe, is a profound expression of cultural transformation. At one point in time, we valued discretion and veiled emotions. Now, it’s all about being an open book.”
A little repression can breed revolution. Of course, a new wave in fashion should also be accompanied by people who are willing to ride it. A couple of years ago, the world realized that it had to cut down its diet. But this obsession for all things green is undeniably graduating from fad to fashion’s new foundation. I quote fashion philosopher Suzy Menkes: “For the forward-looking in the industry, ethics is the new elegance, and doing things right carries more weight than doing things fast. Having the time and the money to care about where clothes come from is set to be a key feature of 21st-century luxury.”
We may not all be eco-warriors, but we are all human beings. Human beings who, at the end of the day, will look for something deeper and more substantial. What sets Vanessa apart is that she belongs to a new breed of sincere, creative souls who look at style as essence.
When you’re young it’s not that easy to look at life in that way. In all of Mega’s eight editions of choosing the ‘It’ young designer, I have seen how they unraveled, layer by layer as they find their voice and vision — it’s all part of the process.
What are people looking for now? Other than the latest ‘It’ bag or designer dress, people are striving to be better versions of themselves and aiming to create a better world. “Sustainability is the new luxury,” I once again quote Suzy as she predicts the next phase in fashion.
These days it is all about making it work, and making it work for the world at the same time.
