Emir Keitta winner of Young Fashion Talent Contest 1994

By Kunang Helmi Picard

JAKARTA (JP): The fashion scene in Indonesia proved itself to be alive and kicking with innovative creativity when the Femina Group staged the 16th Young Fashion Talent Contest on Thursday.

Each of the 258 participants were required to show a minimum of five everyday outfits together with three evening ensembles, all harmonizing under one continual theme. As Femina Group President Pia Alisjahbana succinctly put it in her opening speech, "A fierce but healthy competition."

The ten finalists, Ahimsa, Susila Kristanto, Putra Lingga, Robert Diapari, Emir Keitta, Liliana, Wiyani Damayanti, Aviatie Agustina, Khelly Sugiarto and Francisca Klara Ana were given the opportunity to show their creations to a packed fashion hungry crowd at the Puri Agung ballroom in Hotel Sahid Jaya. A compact photo exhibit at the entrance reminded visitors of the creations of past winners, including Maarthi Djorghi and Itang Yunaz.

The jury consisting of Indonesian haute couture doyen Peter Sie together with fashion experts Poppy Dharsono, Astari Rasyid, Arthur Harland, Samuel Wattimena and Taruna was presided over by Mirta Kartohadiprodjo. Jury member Samuel Wattimena, casually dressed in a cream toned natural fiber outfit, was one of the past winners of the Award who has been successful commercially.

Adding to the mounting suspense, Wattimena displayed considerable talent as a comedian when he desperately searched for the microphone before being able to announce the winners.

The contest was sponsored by Lippo, Texmaco and L'Oreal. Poppy Dharsono provided the makeup which was applied by Sugi Salon who also did the hairdos. Eva Air will fly the winning team to the October Pret-a-Porter '95 show in Paris. The Grand Award consisted of Rp 6 million and the flight to Paris, while the second and third prize added Rp 3 million and Rp 1.5 million respectively to the pockets of those who did not land the main award.

Cosmopolitan Girl

Emir Keitta's short and snappy Cosmopolitan Girl fashion inspired the crowd's noisy approval as the first leggy model stalking down the catwalk on extremely high plateau shoes. Black and white, highlighted by sharp lemon and discrete beige, colored Keitta's fashion palette which included chiffon and satin silk. A far more younger and daring look than other contestants, it remains to be seen whether Jakarta beauties will dare to actually wear the clothes on the busy streets outside their homes.

Braces were conspicuously evident, clasping shorts or miniskirts, while suspenders artfully held up the trousers of a black and white outfit sporting a sexy low-cut white lace bodice.

A padded mini-dress and a white frilly tutu decorated with sequins almost brought the house down. Trousers were flared. Backpacks abounded with the exception of a huge furry bag. Tight jersey see-through bodysuits also screamed for attention, competing with the loud, loud music. Berets completed some outfits. The obligatory bride's outfit was short and ruffled white with a long transparent train.

The spectators were visibly moved by Keitta's performance and so were the judges who awarded him first place. The audience's reaction pleased the young Jakarta designer outfitted in plain black leather trousers contrasting with his more formal black jacket and tie.

Young designers

The other two awards were won by young women designers. Malang, East Java citizen Wiyani Damayanti's romantic and historically angled collection in the Empire look formed a stark contrast to Keitta's young brash look. Damayanti, who is in her third year at the Parisian Esmond Academy, emphasized the high waist line in gray and pink with a pale green print. The layered look with puffed sleeves and smocked bodices and some bare midriffs could only be called ladylike. Blue gray wigs adorned the models who wore the ball dresses draped skillfully around their bodies in soft colors and shiny fabrics.

Francisca Klara Ana from Temanggung produced a more homogeneous look using pink, beige and orange prints melting into each other with medallions of contrasting motifs. She was inspired by Sulawesi silks and the Indian look. Feminine flowing shapes pleased the onlookers, while fine pleats and white or amber jewelry completed the line. The ball dresses were particularly successful and elegant with swirling, full skirts guaranteeing a festive atmosphere.

The jury awarded Putra Lingga from Surabaya Special Mention for his "Rami it's Okay" collection. The Rami collection in natural colors, off-white and light beige kept closely to its main theme with holes piercing the material throughout the garments, knapsacks highlighting the street wear with plenty of waistcoats and high-soled casual shoes. The evening-wear, although also fabricated in this rather heavy material, exuded a thoroughly chic feeling with sequins and bold seams in contrasting white, piped down the length of the long skirts with equally long slits. The backs plunged to reveal the perfect skin of the models including top star Wiwied.

Iman Ahimsa showed soft pastel highlights on his cream creations with a witty contrast achieved by his pastel handbags in pineapple fiber with slim bamboo handles. Susila Krisnanto handled his collection with great panache using maritime motifs in beige and blue contrasting with black and white touches. Krisnanto's final model in pale ethereal blues sported a superb "fish in a net" print, a gigantic shawl completed by long fringes. Robert Diaparis's Hong Kong inspiration with sand beige and saffron Thai silk or organdy off-set by black beading and black piping was very impressive.

Liliana showed great talent with her double georgette, silk and chiffon creations in stark contrasts of black, saffron and burnt orange with clever details like striped underskirts peeping out from under gracious black long dresses. Aviatie Agustina proved to be a very suave designer with two toned beige and dusty brown or burnt orange and beige body shorts or dark chocolate long dresses decorated by flamboyant swirls of prada embroidery. Khelly Slamet Sugiarto also impressed the audience with his thorough treatment of the "gunungan" motif familiar to wayang enthusiasts.

While the jury retired to choose the lucky winners, the onlookers were asked to note down their favorite designer. Here again Emir Keitta overwhelmingly won the hearts of the Jakarta fashion buffs present.

Meanwhile the collections of established designers who were all prize-winners at one stage of the history of the "Lomba Perancang Mode" were shown to relieve the suspense. Musa and Tuty Cholid garnered great applause with their handling of blue and white, while Raizal Rais' treatment of black and white with red roses was closely scrutinized. Adriyanto's very sophisticated collection impressed the impatient crowd, before Poppy Dharsono's classic collection in black and white contrasted with Agnes Budhisurya's extremely bold stripes in the same colors.