Sebastian Gunawan: Glitz and glamor for everyday divas

Sebastian Gunawan: Glitz and glamor for everyday divas

Muara Bagdja, Contributor, Jakarta

Sebastian Gunawan is no pretender to the title "king of style".
It's an honor he has earned during a decade in fashion, defined
by the sumptuous glamor of his creations which have won many
followers and created a new genre of Indonesian fashion.

It was thus wholly appropriate that his latest collection,
marking the 10-year milestone in his career, was called "glitz
and glam".

"The elements of glitter and glamor, when blended with elegant
and feminine designs, will eventually produce inexhaustible
beauty," said Sebastian, 36.

At the end of September, some 1,600 guests flocked to the
Hotel Mulia Senayan in Central Jakarta, with design legend Iwan
Tirta and celebrities such as singer Titi DJ among those taking
the coveted front-row seats. His loyal clients, fashion
journalists and other assorted members of the local fashionista
had queued up to enter the ballroom and receive a souvenir -- a
glossy, beautifully presented appointment book with pictures of
his creations.

From the A-list guests to that attractive book and, of course,
the designs, the event was what the French would praise as a
spectacle.

It opened with models in blouses and skirts, dominated by
black and white embroidery, coming down an orange acrylic catwalk
set against a black background.

That wall was pulled back to reveal a two-story set of
windows, with the models bathed in light and standing in each
window wearing elegant long-sleeved dresses. In its creativity
and ingenuity, Jakarta had seen nothing like it before.

The ending was no less spectacular: five models, in all-white
wedding gowns, stood in the windows as the lights dimmed,
creating a purplish haze. White confetti showered down on them
from the ceiling, the merging of the festive and esthetic.

Stunning openings and finales are all well and good, but it is
what comes in between -- the substance of the show -- that really
matters.

Sebastian did not disappoint with his 98 designs, which were a
fond look back to the styles of the dynamic 1960s.

"My mood is dominated by the 1960s era. In the 1950s,
everything was regular. You wore gloves and a hat. But then,
there was a revolt and a newfound freedom. The glamor was also
different," he said.

For him, this freedom was reflected in simpler designs, with
less decorative elements, including his famous use of beads. He
focused instead on the cut and pattern, dominated by a prominent
flower motif on soft chiffon.

Many of his designs were cut below the breast and fanned out,
not in the childlike Mary Quant baby-doll style, but in long
gowns with a tail detail or flowing shawl.

A long dress with a budding green flower motif, for example,
was cut under the bust, with the shoulder strap combined with a
long shawl trailing the steps of the wearer.

Broad sleeves seamed to the back part of the dress formed
something like "wings", or what the designer termed his "Batman"
look. An outsize ribbon was added to the back part of another
dress, creating an impression of elegance and coquettishness.

Freedom was also reflected in his bold design lines, such as
in a long dress in the style of the Javanese traditional
breastcloth, with slits on the right and left hips.

"I would like to combine elegance and playfulness. The result
will be something with difference and character," he said.

Unlike the rigid features of his usual bustier and ballgown
designs, Sebastian's new collection, while keeping to the glamor
quotient, accommodated a more relaxed design element resembling
flapping wings.

"I like dressing up a woman whose appearance will reflect
glamor and beauty. She dreams of being a diva but does not
indulge herself in fantasizing herself to be a film star on the
silver screen. She makes this dream come true in real life, on
the red carpet," he said.

For many of his guests, the most enticing items were the "ring
gown" and the "painting dress".

The former is made of a series of rings of beads about the
size of the circle formed by our thumb and index finger;
Sebastian called it his "Oreo" gown.

The rings are arranged in such a way they make up a
geometrically cut miniskirt that fits closely to the body.
Matched with a bangs hair-do and knee-high boots, it could have
been a vintage piece once worn by '60s supermodel Twiggy.

It was at once cute and fun but with the necessary glamor
provided by all those glittering beads.

Another dress to impress was the painting gown. He did not
create it with paint and brush but by using different kinds of
lace that formed a rustic panorama of a mountain, grass, trees,
clouds, even a house and a flock of sheep.

He used a patchwork technique similar to the naive painting
style of folk artists, the irony of this fresh departure from his
usual gowns embellished with embroidery, beads and sequins no
doubt not lost on him.

For it is those gorgeous gowns that have been his trademark
since he opened his studio in Harmoni, Central Jakarta, in 1992
with his Italian-born wife Cristina Panarese, also a graduate of
Milan's Instituto Artistico Dell' Abbigliamento Marangoni.

He launched his debut collection in 1995, bringing the
ballgown to the Indonesian public and then gaining a new legion
of clients when the economic crisis that struck two years later
led to well-heeled women turning their attention to quality
clothes made here.

Another factor in his remarkable success is his hospitable,
kind and easy-going personality -- a PR dream -- and his ability
to get along well with almost everybody.

He has proven beyond a doubt his expertise at making gowns,
but some fashion observers are looking for him to move on and
show his skills in other design areas.

"We hope to see him design something other than his specialty
of the long dress," said one fashion designer. "We also would
like to see how Sebastian makes, for example, an attractive suit.
This will show him as an all-rounder."

It is a point well taken in Sebastian Gunawan's development as
a designer. Yet we must also acknowledge and be proud of one of
our compatriots who has made his mark in fashion -- and done so
with grace and respect for others.