High fashion and imagination meet
From humble beginnings in Nelson to an event that attracts designers (and audiences) from around the globe, the World of Wearable Art Awards Show is now 28 years old. So, after all this time, what can designers possibly do that is new and novel?
Quite a lot, it turns out. The 163 designers and their 133 garments demonstrate that imagination is unlimited with a range of weird, wacky, wonderful and plain breathtaking outfits that leave you pondering, “How did they do that with plastic spoons? Could I do the same with wire, paper and sheep-docking tags?”
And forget about wearable art as something that uses only recycled materials, leading to a surplus of plastic bags haphazardly decorated with a few leaves and twigs. WOW is haute couture and genius combined. Laser cutting and 3D printing are leading creativity in new directions and those changes are reflected in what’s on the runway.
But even the term runway is problematic because it reduces WOW to a fashion show when it’s so much more. For starters, the models — when you can see their faces — look happy to be there compared with the grimfaced waifs in conventional fashion shows.
While the outfits are the stars, they’re complemented by a full-on show — part theatre, part dance — regarded as the most technically demanding in New Zealand. Where else will you see a giant animatronic tiger — courtesy of Weta Workshops and voiced by Flight of the Conchords’ Jemaine Clement — as a narrator.
Theatrical boffins Mike Mizrahi and Marie Adams use the sparkling works of painter Reuben Paterson as inspiration to create seven worlds, each with a loose environmental theme.
The closing act features dancers in drab beige, brown and grey reminding us of what a bland and boring world it will become if we allow flora and fauna — like tigers — to die out and don’t let imagination flourish.