Each year the Asia Fashion Collection gives a group of up and coming young Asian designers the opportunity to show their collection at New York Fashion Week. Chosen via a region wide competition hosted by the Vantan Design Institute and PARCO, these designers represent the future of Asian fashion. This year saw a diverse group on the runway with representatives from Japan, Corea, Taiwan, and for the first time an alumni of Parsons School of Design in New York.
Each designer brings a unique socio-cultural perspective to the runway, with influences running from commercial aspiration to the everyday. New York City provided the inspiration for Mei Takeuchi’s street fashion collection for her brand Behind. Assembled from a series of original textiles in black and yellow with white accents, Takeuchi incorporated symbols from around the city to create a strong upscale urban collection that brings lux to the street. Dairiku Okamoto also drew on American themes for a men’s wear collection with a retro feel. Inspired by a teenage boy going to city, the collection was emblazoned with iconic signs referencing the classic American road trip. Cecilia Chang for Ceci, Jaesung Chung for J Chung, and Kevin Ho for Kevin Ho, all showed more mainstream collections aimed at the contemporary urban woman. R.Y/S.H designers Ryunosuke Yamada and Stella Huang bought a militaristic vibe to their women’s wear collection, giving us a series of coats with strong silhouettes, some of the morning’s strongest pieces. The show closed with a collection of bespoke one of a kind suits for men and women by Gahee Lim. Each was crafted with brightly layered tulle visibly hand stitched in colored thread. Though decorative, each thread was essential to the garments construction, and each piece a testament to Lim’s vision as an innovator.
Asia Fashion Collection was attended by Japanese fashion bloggers Tomoco Nozaki and Alisa Ueno. Ueno is also the Creative Director for the Japan based ladies brand Fig and Viper.
