“Fashion is part of the daily air and it changes all the time, with all the events. You can even see the approaching of a revolution in clothes. You can see and feel everything in clothes.” –Diana Vreeland
The top guns of the fabled Designers Guild of Iloilo took center stage last week during the opening of the Ilonggo Fashion and Jewelry Show, an exhibit and co-event of the weeklong Iloilo City Trade Mission and Investment Forum at the Philippine Center on Fifth Avenue in New York City.
When the visiting fashion designers displayed dresses made of hablon, a native fabric woven from Iloilo and other parts of Panay, among the first top officials to recognize the artistic work by Ilonggo designers was Philippine Ambassador to the United Nations Teodoro ‘Teddy Boy’ Locsin, Jr., who was awed by the locally hand-woven fabric and other indigenous materials used.
Other dignitaries impressed by the designs included Philippine Consul General Ma. Theresa B. Dizon-De Vega and former Consul General Mario Lopez De Leon, Jr.
Filipino-American fashion design enthusiasts and others frequented the exhibit, which was spearheaded by Gina Sarabia-Espinosa, wife of Iloilo City Mayor Jose Espinosa III, and directed by Iloilo Provincial Tourism Officer Gilbert ‘Bombette’ Marin.
Fashion mogul Jaki Peñalosa, who incorporates hablon, piña, and silk fibers into her design, led the Ilonggo fashion juggernaut. She is a veteran of 25 years, whose creations embody the fusion of modern novelty with earthly elegance.
Peñalosa is also known for utilizing Filipino indigenous fabrics to create wearable and timeless pieces encompassed in modern influence.
She was joined in the New York exhibit by Djohn Clement, grand winner in the 2009 Robinsons Iloilo Design Lab competition for aspiring fashion designers; and her daughter, Aisha Peñalosa, a fiber artist who creates designs with hablon.
In her first fashion show in 2009, entitled “Cultural Revolution,” the younger Peñalosa used hablon to create her showpiece.
Also on the team was Project Runaway Philippines Season 1finalist Bo Parcon, dubbed “Iloilo’s Bad Boy of Fashion,” he was one of Metropolitan Museum’s Terno Design awardees.
Parcon’s collections have been often featured on Style.com and he never ceases to amaze everyone.
In addition, they were joined by Hector ‘Totong’ Gellangarin, a bold visionary with a flair for combining classic pieces with hablon.
Gellangarin has three decades of experience in the fashion industry and embraces his Ilonggo heritage and culture as he incorporates native textiles and culture-inspired designs in his collections./WDJ