Key Points
- Akira Isogawa will attend iD Dunedin Fashion Week as iD’s international guest designer, following in the footsteps of British fashion royalty Zandra Rhodes, who attended in 2010. His collection will be shown on the runway at the iD Fashion Shows on Friday 8 and Saturday 9 April.
- Akira will arrive in New Zealand fresh from showing his Autumn/Winter collection at Paris Fashion Week. Since 1998, Akira has shown his collections in Paris, presenting to international buyers, and has shown at Australian Fashion Week every year since 1996. His designs are available globally.
- Named as Designer of the Year and Womenswear Designer of the Year at the Australian Fashion Industry Awards in 1999, Akira brings a strong intellectual and cultural element to Fashion Week. His flair for innovation and his pattern-making skills and use of textiles is highly regarded within the fashion industry. His work has elicited favourable reviews in journals such as The New York Times and US Vogue.
- Born in Kyoto, Japan, Akira moved to Australia in 1986 where he studied fashion design at the Fashion Design Studio, East Sydney Technical College (now Sydney Institute of Technology). Local Fashion Design Studio graduates include New Zealand fashion designer Tanya Carlson (CARLSON) and Otago Polytechnic fashion lecturer Margo Barton.
- The judging panel for the 2011 iD International Emerging Designer Awards includes Akira Isogawa, international guest designer; Stefano Sopelza, project supervisor of the Mittelmoda Fashion Award, Italy; and renowned New Zealand fashion designers Margi Robertson (Nom*D) and Tanya Carlson (Carlson).
- A public lecture will be given by Akira Isogawa during iD Dunedin Fashion Week, on Thursday 7 April.
- Watch out for further announcements including a national guest designer and other special guests.
Quotes
Akira Isogawa, international guest designer:
“I’ve found the creativity comes out of NZ has a unique point of view. As a designer, I find it important to stay in touch with new emerging talent and I hope I will be inspired by the fresh and newness of the creative emerging talent at the iD International Emerging Designer Awards.”
Margo Barton, Otago Polytechnic fashion lecturer and iD Committee member:
“People who have sewn or made patterns can see the way Akira’s technical expertise is married with his creativity through his extraordinary pattern cutting, he is a master. In addition his textiles are often embellished and luxurious, and add a feminine twist to his architectural lines. Students and aficionados of fashion alike are in for a treat with Akira and his clothes, sumptuous is the word that comes to mind.”
New Zealand:Standout runway appeal deciding factor for 2011 iD Fashion Show
