'Cultural Values': Indonesia Fashion Week '19 Celebrates Rich Cultural Diversity of Kalimantan
Jakarta. The annual Indonesia Fashion Week will return for its eighth edition this year at Jakarta Convention Center in South Jakarta from March 27 to 31. This year, the official theme will be "Cultural Values."
The event will feature hundreds of local designers and also a handful of international ones from Myanmar, Peru, Uzbekistan and Vietnam.
More than a hundred small and medium fashion enterprises from all over Indonesia will get a chance to promote and sell their products at IFW.
Up-and-coming designers and indie brands will also be given space to showcase their wares in the same venue.
The offical "Cultural Values" theme alludes to IFW's focus this year to celebrate the rich cultural diversity of Kalimantan.
IFW president Poppy Dharsono said the festival will put a spotlight on signature textiles from Kalimantan such as the Samarinda sarong, the Pagatan woven sarong, the Batik Dayak Bajo ("benang bintik") and Sasirangan fabric from Banjarmasin.
"Not enough designers have celebrated Kalimantan culture. The island has so many ethnic groups and unique traditions. It’s our duty to put them out there," Poppy said.
The senior designer said unique Kalimantan textiles, flora and fauna will be the inspiration for many young designers in IFW 2019.
"They will represent the unity and diversity of Indonesian culture," Poppy said last month.
Her hope is also that these young designers can help sell more signature Kalimantan fabrics in the international market, which will be a great help to the traditional fabric artisans of the island.
"Helping local artisans has always been our priority," Poppy said.
International Collaborations
IFW 2019 will also feature emerging international designers on its runway.
Past IFWs had featured big-name designers including Jaimie Sortino from Australia, the Italian Camillo Bona and May Myat Waso from Myanmar.
This year, IFW will invite four emerging designers from Myanmar, Peru, Uzbekistan and Vietnam. However, Poppy said she is still undecided on which names to bring to the festival.
"We are not only providing a platform for young designers to promote their products, but we also want them to learn from each other," Poppy said.
"We hope all these different designers will exchange industry know-hows and experience that will help them improve their skills and knowledge," she said.
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