Fashion Utopias: International Fashion Showcase 2016

19 - 23 February 2016 | West Wing Galleries, Somerset House, London

Installation view, Lebanon | Blueprint Beirut (2016)British Council

Fashion Utopias: IFS 2016

The British Council and the British Fashion Council presented work by 80 emerging fashion designers from 24 countries in 'Fashion Utopias' at Somerset House. The exhibition was the fifth edition of the annual International Fashion Showcase which celebrates the universal relevance of fashion in contemporary culture. In 2016 the showcase was part of Somerset House's Utopia 2016: A Year of Imagination and Possibility which marked the 500th anniversary of the publication of Thomas More's inspirational text, Utopia.

Installation view, Egypt | Contemporary Rebirth (2016)British Council

Throughout history, and across cultures, people have imagined better ways of living in the hope that by imagining that another world is possible empowers us to create it. Although the practice is as old as human civilisation, Thomas More was the first to give it a name, capturing the human imagination ever since.

Installation view, Indonesia | Modest Cosmopolist (2016)British Council

Exhibition concept: defining the meaning of 'Fashion Utopia'?

Throughout history, and across cultures, people have imagined better ways of living in the hope that by imagining that another world is possible empowers us to create it. Although the practice is as old as human civilisation, Thomas More was the first to give it a name, capturing the human imagination ever since.

While it means both ‘no place’ and ‘good place’ Utopia is often imagined as a physical place - an island, city or realm – happened upon by a traveller who discovers new ideas which present solutions to challenges they face in their own country. At the heart of Utopia is the understanding that we can learn from different places, peoples and cultures. In this spirit, the International Fashion Showcase 2016 will create a space of possibility, aspiration and anticipation where our audience can encounter the imagination of the world through fashion.

Installation view, Next In Line (2016)British Council

Next in Line

‘Next in Line’ showcases burgeoning design talent from 11 countries around the world. A platform to discover and nurture creative from countries with diverse cultures, the result is inherently Utopian. Sponsored by Bonaveri.

Installation view, Next In Line (2016)British Council

By placing an emphasis on the varied viewpoints of contemporary Utopias from the perspective of each designer, nations separated by thousands of miles become neighbours.

Installation view, Next In Line (2016)British Council

Designer Award Winner: Hala Kaiksow (Bahrain) for her impressive design showcased in the Next in Line exhibition.

Installation view, Next In Line (2016)British Council

The garments displayed, weaving artisanal craft with modernity, inspire the visitor to explore, compare and contrast.

Installation view, Nigeria | Across the Bleed (2016)British Council

Nigeria | Across the Bleed

With the designs of Lagos Fashion and Design Week's emerging talent suspended in thin-air, ‘Across the Bleed’ captures a moment in the midst of a cosmic bang, where energy transforms into a state of calmness, the moment when everything becomes still. Curated by: Yegwa Ukpo. Exhibition design by: Natasha Guinness. Organised by: Style House Files.

Installation view, Nigeria | Across the Bleed (2016)British Council

Here, visitors bear witness to the evolution of fashion: a utopian fashion that transcends the imagination, dynamically merges heritage and innovation, and takes its place in the veritable paradise of Africa and beyond.

Installation view, Nigeria | Across the Bleed (2016)British Council

'Across the Bleed' utilises readily available virtual reality technology to transform visitors back and forth between a physical, interactive installation and dreamlike, alternate world shaped by potential futures.

Installation view, Nigeria | Across the Bleed (2016)British Council

Reflecting upon the multitude of opportunities that the information age offers to emerging designers in Nigeria and beyond, the showcase conjures tantalising bridges between our earthly reality and the myriad utopias we envision in out perpetual search for better.

Installation view, Ukraine | Fashion School Rebels (2016)British Council

Ukraine | Fashion School Rebels

Revolution, conflict and economic crisis have only served to further drive Ukraine’s young fashion designers. Building a modern, global fashion reputation is no easy task in a country where excessive regulation, a lack of state support and outdated fashion skills’ training mean young talent has to fight to get ahead. Curation and exhibition design by: Masha Reva and Love Curly. Organised by: Ukrainian Fashion Week.

Installation view, Ukraine | Fashion School Rebels (2016)British Council

The designers selected for this exhibition bring their collective vision of Ukraine to the international stage, helping create a future for the sector and inspiring a new generation of Ukrainian talent.

Installation view, Egypt | Contemporary Rebirth (2016)British Council

Egypt | Contemporary Rebirth

For Egypt’s growing fashion industry, ‘Contemporary Rebirth’ is a chance to define the new, post-revolution Egyptian identity. Curated by: Susan Sabet. Exhibition design by: Hedayat Islam, Jamspace. Organised by: Embassy of Egypt in London and Pashion Magazine.

Installation view, Egypt | Contemporary Rebirth (2016)British Council

The Tree of Life and the lotus flower stand as metaphors for the young designers drawing upon the region’s rich past in order to look forward to the popular dream of ‘a better life, a better Egypt’.

Installation view, Egypt | Contemporary Rebirth (2016)British Council

For them, the way to overcome the Utopian dilemma – that the ideal reality is always just a bit farther away – is collective and collaborative perseverance.

Installation view, Portugal | Bloom (2016)British Council

Portugal | Bloom

A lasting Utopia is one that promotes sustainable growth. As such, this is the key concern for the Portuguese fashion designers comprising ‘BLOOM’. Curated by: Miguel Flor. Exhibition design by: Miguel Bento. Organised by: AICEP and Portugal Fashion – ANJE.

Installation view, Portugal | Bloom (2016)British Council

The installation is realised using eco-friendly cork – native to Portugal – in partnership with Amorim.

Installation view, Portugal | Bloom (2016)British Council

This ideal world straddles the line between natural and artificial, a reflection of the designers’ attention to the re-use of materials and development of new techniques in the hope of achieving a socially-conscious fashion ecosystem that is both individual and global in its reach.

Installation view, Philippines | Utopian U-Turns (2016)British Council

Philippines | Utopian U-Turns

How can a country so often betrayed by the elements cling to the utopian dream? Curated  by: Marian Pastor Roces & Judy Freya Sibayan, TAO Management Corp. Exhibition design by: TAO Management Corp. Organised by: Department of Trade and Industry, Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions.

Installation view, Philippines | Utopian U-Turns (2016)British Council

Centred on the concept of reversals, 'Utopian U-Turns' presents an uplifting insight into the ways young designers from the Philippines are combating global forces with creative endurance.

Installation view, Philippines | Utopian U-Turns (2016)British Council

Having no firm assurance that an ideal world will one day prevail, they reverse and set out again in new and experimental directions.

Installation view, Philippines | Utopian U-Turns (2016)British Council

Trading on cultural traditions, storytelling and family expertise – and reinterpreting them for the contemporary world – these designers know that even small triumphs will further the journey.

Installation view, Lebanon | Blueprint Beirut (2016)British Council

Lebanon | Blueprint Beirut

'Blueprint Beirut' deconstructs the architectural arcades (qanater) of the traditional Lebanese home to their blueprints. Curated by: Tala Hajjar. Exhibition design by: Elie Metni. Organised by: The Arab British Centre and Starch Foundation.

Installation view, Lebanon | Blueprint Beirut (2016)British Council

The architectural arcades admit streams of light into the home’s central room, a space where past rituals shape daily life and where eight young designers have found mutual inspiration.

Installation view, Lebanon | Blueprint Beirut (2016)British Council

Playing with the Utopian co-existence of light and the material world, the exhibition is a re-imagining of familiar space; a reflection of Lebanese fashion’s journey from convention towards a future still grounded in Mediterranean heritage.

Installation view, Lebanon | Blueprint Beirut (2016)British Council

Curation Award Winner: Tala Hajjar of Lebanon.

Installation view, Indonesia | Modest Cosmopolist (2016)British Council

Indonesia | Modest Cosmopolist

‘Modest Cosmopolist’ navigates the challenging frontier between a nostalgia for humans’ earthly ties and desire for a creative, cosmopolitan future. Curation and exhibition design by: Carri Munden. Organised by: HijUp.com.

Installation view, Indonesia | Modest Cosmopolist (2016)British Council

Four Indonesian designers come together in this exhibition, representing the four elements of fire, water, air, light and the ever-elusive quintessence.

Installation view, Indonesia | Modest Cosmopolist (2016)British Council

The exhibition forwards the view that in order to grow, we must return to our collective and cultural roots. The result is a nourishing and sustainable harmony of modesty and the avant-garde.

Installation view, Slovakia | Fashion Source Code (2016)British Council

Slovakia | Fashion Source Code

Four Slovak emerging designers are brought together for an inter-media adventure in which the merging of fashion and technology mark an exciting, unpredictable future. Curated by: Zuzana Šidlíková. Exhibition design by: Ján Šicko and Oliver Kleinert. Organised by: Slovak Fashion Council.

Installation view, Slovakia | Fashion Source Code (2016)British Council

‘Fashion Source Code’ recognises the struggle for designers to balance creativity with business strategy, a fact that motivates fashion professionals to consider the ever-changing nature of their art.

Installation view, Slovakia | Fashion Source Code (2016)British Council

The selected designers exemplify the re-adaptation of Slovak craft traditions that is shaping the country’s developing fashion ecosystem, propelling it toward a global future.

Installation view, Guatemala | Rebooting Dreams (2016)British Council

Guatemala | Rebooting Dreams

‘Guatemala – Rebooting Dreams’ invites visitors and voyagers to take rest in the dreamlike surroundings of an abstracted Guatemalan house – the ideal setting for the mixing of traditional patterns and contemporary fabrics by the country’s emerging designers. Curated by: Cecilia Santamarina de Orive. Exhibition design by: Taller Ken, Quintana & Ros. Organised by: Embassy of Guatemala UK, Foreign Affairs Ministry of Guatemala, and Ministry for Culture Guatemala.

Installation view, Guatemala | Rebooting Dreams (2016)British Council

With a focus on – and deep respect for – the promotion of artisans and artisanal traditions, they employ a magic touch to overcome the challenges of working in a country in developmental flux, bringing Guatemalan tradition into the 21st century with universal appeal.

Installation view, Guatemala | Rebooting Dreams (2016)British Council

Installation view, Czech Republic | The Last Fata Morgana (2016)British Council

Czech Republic | The Last Fata Morgana

This year the Czech Republic points a telescope toward a surreal oasis on the horizon. Curated by: Pavel Ivančic. Exhibition design by: Ales Kachlik. Organised by: Czech Centre London and Academy of Arts, Architecture and Design in Prague.

Installation view, Czech Republic | The Last Fata Morgana (2016)British Council

‘The Last Fata Morgana’ draws upon the concept of an ephemeral mirage, where garments, accessories and jewellery are suspended from a tree, like exotic fruit.

Installation view, Czech Republic | The Last Fata Morgana (2016)British Council

Considering ideas of taste, the role of the individual and the relevance of fashion in a global world, lights shine upon young Czech designers’ efforts to redefine their ideal world – one that no longer need be a trick of the mind.

Installation view, Czech Republic | The Last Fata Morgana (2016)British Council

Country Award Winner: Czech Republic for its exhibition Last Fata Morgana.

Installation view, Romania | Found. Lost. Found. (2016)British Council

Romania | Found. Lost. Found.

‘Found. Lost. Found.’ rediscovers Romania’s cultural and storytelling heritage through an immersive installation of contemporary jewellery and video projections. Curated by: David Sandu. Exhibition design by: David Sandu and Ioana Ardelean. Organised by: Romanian Cultural Institute and Assamblage – The National Association for Contemporary Jewellery.

Installation view, Romania | Found. Lost. Found. (2016)British Council

The exhibition reinterprets the age-old tale of lost treasure, hidden by Romania’s ancient Dacian civilization in the face of imminent Roman invasion.

Installation view, Romania | Found. Lost. Found. (2016)British Council

The treasure and its contemporary counterparts are presented as living organisms, continuous and sedimentary, and embedded in collective memory. Here, their values transcend to one that is universal – a cultural and artistic Utopia.

Installation view, Austria | Another Austria: Utopia (2016)British Council

Austria | Another Austria: Utopia

Austria's best young designers unite to present their vision of a digital utopian dream. They are unbound by time and space, eschewing borders and liberating themselves from traditional fashion seasons. Curated by: Claudia Rosa Lukas. Exhibition design by: Polimekanos. Organised by: Austrianfashion.net and Austrian Cultural Forum London.

Installation view, Austria | Another Austria: Utopia (2016)British Council

With a modern, streamlined approach, they return to the essence of clothing and the body, making use of freely accessible resources

Installation view, Austria | Another Austria: Utopia (2016)British Council

As with previous editions, ‘Another Austria’ aims to cultivate a sense of open exchange between creatives in Vienna, London and beyond.

Installation view, Korea | Print Matters (2016)British Council

Korea | Print Matters

Korea’s ‘Print Matters’ discovers Utopia within the pages of magazines, where aspirational narratives and exotic places combine with bleeding-edge fashion to evoke a progressive paradise. Curator and exhibition design by: Tory Turk. Art direction by​: Amy Preston and Amélie Bonhomme. Organised by: Korean Cultural Centre UK. The Korean exhibition continued at the Korean Cultural Centre.

Installation view, Korea | Print Matters (2016)British Council

Through an exploration of Korean designers’ relationships with magazines – often their first contact with fashion – the exhibition delves into the potential of print to inspire, captivate and promote cultural exchange.

Installation view, Korea | Print Matters (2016)British Council

The energy of these designers’ – high in conceptual designs – proves that, in this Utopia, print is certainly not dead.

Credits: Story

The International Fashion Showcase 2016 was directed by Anna Orsini, British Fashion Council Strategic Consultant, and Niamh Tuft, British Council Fashion Programme Manager.

Supported by: Austria: BKA – Federal Chancellery of Austria, Advantage Austria, AWS Austria Wirtschaftsservice, Vienna Business Agency, Creative Center Departure. Czech Republic: Galerie Smecky Foundation, Lasvit, Pilsner Urquell, Czech Tourism, Techo. Egypt: Mr.Farouk Younes, Living In Interiors, British Council Egypt, Mrs.Marilene Ashbaa, BP Egypt, Mrs.Nadia Abuheram, Mr.Moatasem El Antaki & the many others who donated in person and through Indiegogo. Nigeria: NEC (Nigerian Export Promotion Council), Mania Magazine, Bella Naija. Philippines: Embassy of the Philippines, London, United Kingdom, Philippine Trade and Investment Centre, London. Portugal: Portuguese Embassy UK. Romania: Unicredit Bank, Slovakia: Embassy of the Slovak Republic in London, Academy of Fine Arts and Design Bratislava, Slovak Design Center, Ministry of Culture of the Slovak Republic, Visegrad Fund, Fond na podporu umenia. Ukraine: British Council Ukraine, Embassy of Ukraine to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, Western NIS Enterprise Fund.

Credits: All media
The story featured may in some cases have been created by an independent third party and may not always represent the views of the institutions, listed below, who have supplied the content.
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