Merino wool takes to the catwalk
29/05/2008
It presented the work of up-and-coming designers involved in its Protégé Project – Kristian Aadnevik, Sandra Backlund, Jean-Pierre Braganza, Ioannis Cholidis, and Julian Louie. The young international designers expressed their talents through collections created with Australian Merino wool fabrics and yarns.
Launched in June 2007, the Protégés have been selected and mentored by Donatella Versace; Karl Lagerfeld; Sir Paul Smith; editor-in-chief of Italian Vogue, Franca Sozzani; and Francisco Costa of Calvin Klein.
As part of the show, an Australian Protégé was announced as part of the Project. Recent winner of the L’Oréal Melbourne Fashion Festival (LMFF) Designer Award, Ben Pollitt, presented his showcase alongside the other Protégés. Mr Pollitt was selected by Vogue Australia editor, Kristy Clements, to be the Australian Protégé. He presented his label, Friedrich Gray, in his own show at the event on the previous night.
AWI’s Craig Welsh believes that fostering fresh talent like the designers on show at Australian Fashion Week will play a vital role in ensuring the future of Australian Merino wool. “It’s all about educating the next generation of the world’s best designers about the benefits of Australian Merino wool,” he said. He added that Merino wool’s green credentials were having an effect on designer’s enthusiasm to work with the fibre. "In an increasingly green environment, Merino is the new black,” he said.
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