Dear Shaded Viewers,
Whilst Milan and Paris fill the fashion schedules, the rest of the world isn’t sleeping or idle. The fiftieth edition of this terrific fashion festival, celebrating designers and young talents, in Valencia also underlines the importance of sustainability and ethical fashion. Taking place in the extraordinary architectural surroundings of the Hemisfèric which was the first building of the Ciutat de les Arts i les Ciències that opened its doors to the public in 1998. It is a spectacular building designed by Santiago Calatrava. Today this extraordinary city has seen film crews and actors from George Clooney to Penélope Cruz and Antonio Banderas and Doctor Who to El Reino working amidst its glittering mosaics, shimmering waters, and soaring prehistoric skeletal buildings.
The runways of the shows encircle the giant globe at the centre of the building and the audience seated in two tiers gathers to watch the models go by. Applause ripples around the space, often hinting at what’s to come.
This was my second visit as a guest and Miquel Suay, who is the creator, organiser and driving force behind this event. Indeed, many of the team have been on board for more than one season supporting this exercise in Valencian fashion promotion and creative focus.
The balance between designers who are established and with clients who know their work and fashion signature and very young, just begging fashion entrepreneurs is magical. Contrasting an entire collection roaming around the space by Agatha Ruiz de la Prada with just a few looks from a beginner is fascinating. Emergentes featured Oscar Bolea working wonderfully with denim, or Andrea Marza creating a huge padded collared look in apricot, Paula Calabrese send out a great look on a gentleman wearing a macrame tunic and with quizzing glasses in his hand. Giving an idea of the inventiveness in the few brief moments these eight designers showed, Marina Pastor Olivares reflected on pattern and shapes recalling the Ballets Russes, Ines Conti showed fascinating Mondrian like solid colour patches on soft textured pieces. With strong silhouettes and high levels of fabric use, construction, and finish. I went backstage afterwards to handle all the collections on the rail and was impressed. Manuel Cornejo worked wonderfully with lightness and volume, the looks floating past, and Eva Caso also followed the use of shape and fabric to tell a fashion story of transforming pieces which unfolded before the audience as the models paraded past. However, we later learnt that Isabel Pena had won the award for her collection. Cocktail hour, red carpet, and gala dressing, but in paper, stiffening, taffeta, vintage velvet, rope, string, and a variety of unidentifiable fabrics, even though I’d handled them, all allowing for recycling after that moment of one’s starry appearance, the clothes could just disappear. It was a brilliant act of fashion couture, fashion awareness and wit. When I asked her how long her own black two piece took to make Isabel replied “moments” although clearly others took real time and construction.
As each season passes even with some wonderful support the sheer determination required in a business where budgets reduce and reduce is a testimony to Miquel Saul’ commitment to the undertaking. We need to support this venture, not to say adventure, in any way we can.
In spite of my years of viewing shows the energy and professionalism behind CLEC fashion festival is amazing.
Show production values are so slick, slow motion and pensive or snappy and fast paced, edgy street style or restrained elegance; they’ve got it covered. The hair and make up team complete the looks with a fabulous sense of harmony, be it for a mixed show or a single designer. Shoes and accessories are not allowed to become overwhelming or tricksy and the music matches the collections perfectly. The standard of the models who are all local, like the rest of the team, is truly amazing and speaks loudly of the fashion professionalism at the highest level in Valencia.
It is still important to highlight a few special mentions since it’s my role as an observer to do so. But in all honestly there no disasters or failures, it simply that a few stood out during my time at the event.
Agatha Ruiz de la Prada was established some seasons ago in Spain, her aesthetic, culture, and fashion attitude have strong Spanish references. Her colour and pattern sense, her shapes which merge fluidity with sleek sexiness and her styling which takes witty accents mixed with elegance to bring her own inimitable signature to everything she touches from top to toe. Her show at CLEc, as last years raised the roof with cheers and whoops of pleasure. She is the perfect example of creative integrity- it changes but within her repertoire, it moves, but her own pace. Her clients cross fashion boundaries and like Jean Charles de Castelbajc “fashionable” is not the main concern of her clothes, joyous and interesting are much more applicable words. Just one piece exemplifies her ability to make colour and pattern work; a simple sweatshirt top in seven colours, bold panels of colour, yet a single deep azure, blue rib containing it all and the surprise of one pale pink panel with a shocking pink heart. Oh, and the sour yellow and white striped dress flipping into heavy fringe was magic as it whizzed past.
Ruth Durendez works especially in her family heritage of leather and beautiful accessories. Her Samurai inspired styling doesn’t overwhelm the beautiful pieces the quality of the finish or the desirability of the work. As it strode past on the models I could see myself, and many others, placing pieces in our wardrobes.
Jaime Piquer Costura was not a name I confess I was familiar with, his early working years were in Paris, but I loved the essential Spanishness and the genital hints of Balenciaga in his clothes. Proportions were brilliantly explored, from long and trapeze lined fluidity to swathed and encircling. His use of black then painterly shades hinted at Velasquez, and his fabrics often used saturated colour contrasted with lustrous sheen. Couture level details of piping and finishes completed the statement. I loved the neat black and white check which burst at the back into an under layer of deep orange. I loved the swirled tangerine taffeta top/mini dress which appeared to have whipped like an ice cream, the tiered circular dress in distressed urban print with a bateau neck and cap sleeves and also the white dress with a deep brand of black printed lace worn over a curving architectural deep cerise top.
There must be a collective word for mermaids and mermen. Alineo Studio showed a collection which blended the beauty of sea anemones and the illustrations to The Little Mermaid. Fluttering and dragging in slow motion, as though every piece had just left the sea, there managed to be summer tops, softly slender trousers, aquatic shades, and deep underwater corals. The balance between very revealing and more covered up, the understanding of clients who might manage seaweed like rivulets trailing and the neater more restrained variation was great.
The opening look of a long coat dress in white over superb horse head printed ballooning harem trousers was swiftly followed by a glittering mesh dress with a deep band of olive-green waving ostrich feathers worn over a short white classic shirt. In the first two outfits Bibencia had shown us exciting fashion, with an original viewpoint and an individual approach to designing fashion in 2024. An oversize jacket and long slender skirt were made in rich tapestry covered in landscapes and the threads of the background of the fabrics gave an almost antique feeling to the sexy look. A rich deep marron glacé mousseline cascaded in ruffles and trailed behind the model. A superb mossy green man’s blazer with matching shirts was worn over a cream lace shirt and a fresh posy of flowers was pinned on the shoulder; the models red hair shone in harmony with the look. Another men’s outfit was in deep wine layers like a vintage claret or burgundy. Shorts, shirt, and top spelt out a romantic dandy. If the collection felt a little disjointed with so many ideas, better that than commercial blandness, it certainly kept the audience and I on our toes.
Finally, I must praise highly the really great casting by 5.0 models’ management. Backstage management and show calling from the inimitable Amalia Riestra and last but certainly not least top level and quality and adaptabilities from hair and makeup by Let’s Make Up
Later,
Tony
