Puzzling pieces form the norm in Fashion Week

Puzzling pieces form the norm in Fashion Week

By Dini S. Djalal

JAKARTA (JP): After months of planning and chaos, Jakarta's
first Fashion Week has rolled up its red carpet. In six fashion
shows toasting 62 collections, Indonesia's designers tried to
prove that they've got the goods to make Jakarta the fashion
capital of Southeast Asia by the year 2000.

The Jakarta Tourism Promotion Board, a major sponsor of
Fashion Week, also wants tourists to replace Singapore as a
shoppers' city.

As leading batik designer Iwan Tirta explains: "Fashion is one
way of putting Indonesia on the map of the world".

APPMI Director Poppy Dharsono realizes, however, that fashion
is a competitive, cut-throat world. What she wants is to create
strong foundations for a local fashion industry which can then
compete overseas. "We don't want to take over the market. We just
want a sounding from the market of what we can offer them," she
said.

Poppy adds that audience response has been positive. "We were
so worried that nobody would come because it was mid-week, but
there were a lot of people! That shows that fashion has become a
lifestyle here," she said.

Many did turn up at APPMI's four consecutive shows at the
Jakarta Convention Center. Poppy Dharsono and Agnes Budhisurya
had solo shows on Wednesday, while the Young Designer show and
Fashion Tendance '97, the yearly trend show representing 22
designers, were held on Thursday. The Busana Muslim (Moslem
fashion) designers showed on Friday.

Puzzling

A question mark still looms, however, over whether the
audience will buy what they saw on the catwalk. APPMI may be
known as the business-minded rival to the more high-fashion
Indonesian Fashion Designers Council (IPMI), but some of the
APPMI collections were far from commercial. In a time of
minimalist chic, some ensembles were over-done, outdated, or just
plain bizarre.

Granted, oddballs are found in every industry. But what
dragged the APPMI collections down from their potential was not
the scattering of puzzling pieces, but the general lack of
direction. Some IPMI collections were also haphazardly put
together. Overall, they were not just a jumble of clothes, but a
packaged vision of their idealized woman, or man.

Some APPMI members may argue that, as garment manufacturers,
they want to appeal to the broadest market possible. "Fashion is
not just about image -- it's a business. Creativity is important,
but so is management, merchandising, and marketing," said Poppy
Dharsono, hinting at the ongoing feud between APPMI and IPMI. The
split occurred a few years ago because APPMI, which is listed
under the Indonesian Chamber of Commerce (KADIN), wanted to
pursue a more commercial direction.

Yet there is a fine line between appealing to the market and
catering to the market, and the successful designer knows how to
strike the balance. History's most influential designers, such as
Yves Saint Laurent and Issey Miyake, earned their name by
ignoring market demands and being true to their esthetics.

From year to year, however, APPMI resorts to following
fair-weather trends. This season, for example, Raizal Rais is
crazy about knits -- knitted dresses, cardigans, and bell-bottoms
in a blinding rainbow of colors and prints. The clothes were fun,
but of low use in tropical weather. Is this just an infatuation
with the knitwear dominating European fall collections?

Ubiquitous throughout the collections are sarong-like check
prints, first seen in Indonesia in Biyan's summer show and sold
cheaply in Indonesia. Some used the checks with great fun. Jeany
Johanes has been designing little girl fashions for years, so she
shaped them into cute A-line dresses worn with combat boots.
Looking like a teenager may not be for everybody, except for
teenagers themselves, who comprise a large portion of the
consumer market.

Hendry Kusuma was less definitive. He designed ensembles in a
range of colors and fabrics, but without a thread between them.
His finale came in the form of well-cut white satin suits --
elegant fare, so why wear them with pom-poms on the shoes and the
models' heads?

Pom-pom shoes, however, were great compared to the black
patent pumps worn with the breeziest chiffon gowns (Agnes
Budhisurya, Ellen Darsana, Suzanna Wanasuka). Designers may argue
that they design clothes, not shoes. But if they're not selling
shoes, then why have them at all? If they want the fine tailoring
and intricate hand-painting to be the focus, then why distract
audiences with clunky footwear?

But if not enough styling disadvantaged some collections, too
much styling weighed down others. Musa Widyatmadjo had some
lovely 1940-style dresses, but the models wore antennas on their
heads! What's the connection between subdued office-wear and
crazy hair? For evening, Musa put sequined kebaya over shorts,
cardigans over sequined tops -- a good example of someone who
wants to please everyone all of the time. The individual pieces
are interesting, but together they're a mess.

Some collections were more directional. Taruna Kusmayadi did
his in candy colors of raw silk, with matching shoes. A
watermelon pantsuit was delicious, a lilac evening gown just as
tasty. But several outfits seemed old, especially with shoulder
pads. One can see where Taruna wants to go, but he has not
completed the journey.

Taruna's young, and will learn from experience. Ina Rachma is
a more seasoned designer who is scaling the heights of her
potential. Ina's an embroidery master, and this season she spins
her threads in a psychedelic web of colorful squiggly lines. It's
a progressive move which will bring in younger customers.

Both Koos Arumdani and Poppy Dharsono have also defined their
signature style. Koos Arumdani does batik chic, particularly in
linens and cottons. Her safari wear may be a little rough for
city life, but they're funky travel wear. Poppy Dharsono also
went on safari, but in a more urbane mood, using bright citrus
colors. Yet it's her batik eveningwear -- in lean silhouettes and
sinuous golden hues -- which reiterate her reputation.

Ardianto Pranata is another great veteran. His expertise is
fine batik and tie-dye, but he also knows how to weave
traditional textiles into a modern composition, using them mostly
as accessories. His shapes are modest and wearable, and the
styling is subdued.

The highlight of the evening, however, was not Harry
Dharsono's beaded evening gowns straight out of Joan Collins's
closet, but Nanik Rachmat's sexy body-hugging collection. The
bias-cut gowns, tie-dyed in earth colors, were the epitome of
ethnic chic, and hinted at a confidence lacking in the other
designers. Proving that she's a name to watch, Nanik Rachmat
showed a singular and visionary esthetic, as well as a coherent
understanding that the market wants well-made marketable clothes
which keeps them on the hip side of fashion.