Sebastian Gunawan fashions a new look

Sebastian Gunawan fashions a new look

By Agni Amorita

JAKARTA (JP): A man with principle. That's how we should
describe fashion designer Sebastian Gunawan, who will present on
Monday, Nov. 15 his second line collection called Votum at the
Ballroom in the Mulia Hotel, Jakarta. More than 75 of Votum's
latest creations are set to be shown.

"There go my new millennium colors, such as red, pink and
green," said Sebastian, who will also present blue denim in
various cuts, such as a raincoat jacket in zebra patterns. "There
will be red, white and black jeans too." Sebastian said he will
show pants to pallazos, short sleeves to long sleeves, and mini
to maxi dresses. "I want to begin the New Year with a colorful
warm greeting."

In fact, colorful is his main attribute. The sustained attack
of gray for the last two years was unable to persuade Sebastian
to become a lavender fan. And that is just a start for the long
list of his unshakable design principles.

When Jakarta was flooded by the kebaya mania (kebaya is a
traditional Indonesian long sleeved blouse), Sebastian Gunawan
maintained his colorful and modern city look collections. He has
even strengthened his well-known European influence, although he
has been forced to cut his budget to buy imported fabrics in the
monetary crisis. Sebastian can drop his price to Rp 150,000 per
piece by his minimalist approach.

"Being creative is the key word," he said. In return,
Sebastian's consistency has given him a great number of loyal
clients that enable him to innovatively invent more creations.
This must be the main reason why earlier this year in the ongoing
monetary crisis, he launched his newest line -- Sebastian &
Cristina -- and also an expensive bridal collection. He even
agreed to help a local theater group by donating some creations
for its performance. Sebastian's first costume designer job
started last October in the week-long Miss Julie, a classic drama
by August Strindberg put on by Jakarta's Institute of the Arts.

Sebastian spent two months researching the costume for actress
Inne Febriyanti, who performed as Miss Julie, as well as for the
other characters. "This story's setting was in the Middle Ages so
I had to transform it without losing its flexibility to be worn,"
he explained. For Miss Julie's dancing scene, Sebastian created a
sexy sleeveless nightgown that in various publications was
suggested as a supporting element for the success of Miss Julie.

Born in Jakarta on July 2, 1967, Anwar Sebastian Gunawan or
Seba as his friends call him, admits that he adores beauty.

"And basically fashion is about being beautiful," he said. His
interest in the fashion world began in his junior high days.

While his schoolmates went to movies after school hours, young
Seba went to the Susan Budihardjo Fashion School in Jakarta. "I
was only 17 when I attended Susan's class," he recalled. Then
Seba flew to Los Angeles's Fashion Institute of Design and
Merchandising in 1988. Later on, as Seba started to take on the
influences of European style in his works, he decided to pursue
further studies in Milan. "I spent two years at the Instituto
Artistico Dell' Abbigliamento Marangoni," said Seba, who
graduated with distinction for his Fashion Illustrations.

Milan became his second home. "I started my professional
career as a designer there," said the former designer for Milan's
Egon Von Furstenberg boutique. It was also Milan that introduced
Seba to Cristina Panarese, the mother of his daughter.

"Cristina was my schoolmate," said Seba. "And we have always
held different viewpoints about fashion," said Seba.

Seba tends to create elegant gowns while Cristina, who used to
work for Radisa For Titolo By Basile in Milan, is fond of the
naughty -- and sometimes the avant garde -- street look. The two
different perspectives -- Yin and Yang, East and West -- work
well for both of them. "It made us realize how we need each
other."

The couple were married in 1992 and have made Jakarta their
home.