Life is Golden
The Bottega Gold Fijian Fashion Festival is going all out to give the Pacific the fashion platform it deserves. Come and ‘Witness the Revolution’ at the inaugural Festival.
The Festival will be held from June 1 to 2 at the home of the Festival, the Grand Pacific Hotel in Suva.
Faraz Ali is the chairperson for the Fashion Council of Fiji and is the trustee of the Fijian Fashion Festival.
Diversity is a word readily thrown around in a world governed by the identity politics of the age of social media.
Threads will often discuss the need for “diverse representation” and “appropriate representation of diverse people and ideas” and “the need for diversity in a world historically governed by the hegemony of European supremacy”.
Yes, all the right words, all the right discussions about cultural appropriation, the visibility of people of colour in mainstream media, representation of people with disabilities in pop culture, and diverse religious expression in artistic output.
So many words, so little action.
The fashion world is at the forefront of identity politics, due primarily and obviously to the fact that fashion is an immediate identifier of identity.
Indeed designers must be aware now more than ever before, in the age of immediacy and social media, to never appropriate a culture that is not theirs, to be respectful of the rights of marginalised groups, indeed to campaign for these groups, to make a statement about the state of identity on Earth in 2018.
But what of the people whom we chose to represent this identity?
What of the models? The fashion world has lagged in this regard. While people of colour on the runway is “trending”, we are yet to see a concerted effort to maintain the hype of multi-ethnic representation/diversity on the runway.
This is not a new conversation in our trillion dollar, global industry. Who could ever forget the memorable (and now collectors item) 2008 ‘Black Issue’ of Vogue Italia, where now deceased visionary Editor in Chief Franca Sozzani attempted to address the issue of lack of diversity by producing an edition of the most fashionable magazine in the world that featured only black models. One could argue that we are seeing the fruit of her gamble in 2018 (a full 10 years later).
Even though it seems that we are making positive strides towards ethnic diversity - what about people with disabilities? Or trans women and men? These are areas that have not been mainstreamed, and indeed I would argue that the issue of colour is still one wherein models of colour are still seen as trends. And trends end. Our industry is guilty of ignoring our insistence on treating diversity as something fashionable for the moment. What does this mean for Fiji? Well, we need to take the lead. It has been the fashion to follow the fashion so to speak.
We have often looked with wide eyes at the larger and traditional centres of fashion and hoped upon hope that we could emulate their splendour.
We have straightened our hair, attempted to conform to their body standards, and walked like them. It’s time we took the lead and made a change.
We come from a country that is naturally diverse, indeed Suva, the global centre for Pacific fashion, is the most naturally diverse geographic centre in our region. The Bottega Gold Fijian Fashion Festival is committed to becoming a global leader in championing diversity, inclusivity, and excellence. On our terms. We are proud to represent the full width and breadth of our ethnic backgrounds, people with disabilities, trans people, gender non conforming people, and diverse body shapes and sizes.
It is of the utmost impossible that our industry belongs to us, and that we start laying foundations for a future we can all be proud of.
It is possible for us all to live life golden, in whatever form we were created.
The Festival celebrates our diversity, and it is not a fad, a passing trend, or the fashion of the day. It is here to stay. The Revolution is here.