Australian Fashion Week Held An All-Indigenous Runway Show For The First Time And It Looks Stunning
For the first time in history, Australian Fashion Week featured an entirely Indigenous show.
For the first time in history, Australian Fashion Week featured an entirely Indigenous show.
The event featured a total of 12 designers Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander backgrounds in two group runway shows and one student showcase.
In a standalone feature on Wednesday Jun. 2, First Nations Fashion + Design (FNFD), a not-for-profit Indigenous corporation that aims to support the growth of the Indigenous fashion industry, hosted a show featuring all-Indigenous talent, from the designers and models to the stylists and staff.
Curated by Grace Lillian Lee, a Meriam Mer woman who serves as the founder, designer and creative director of FNFD, the show featured 21 models and the work of seven Indigenous designers. It also included a multitude of live musical performances from Indigenous musicians, dancers and artists.
“This is not a moment. This is a movement,” was stamped against the photocall background, showcasing the organization’s hopes for the future of the Indigenous fashion industry. Indigenous representation has been a rare presence in previous Australian Fashion Weeks.
The next day, Indigenous Fashion Projects (IFP) hosted a show showcasing the work of six established Indigenous designers who were part of a program that paired indigenous designers with Australian brands to help them grow their business.
“For a long time we’ve been associated with $4.99 boomerangs – no more please,” designer Amanda Healy, who showed as part of the IFP. “We’re high end, our artwork is amazing, it is an ancient, beautiful culture that has such depth,” Healy, a Wonnarua woman who founded Kirrikin, which transforms contemporary Indigenous artists’ works into sophisticated luxury items.
