Unique collections and new trends of Belarusian fashion showcased by designers from Belarus and Europe on Minsk catwalks
Festivals of design art present us with new names in the field of fashion, with collections by young Belarusian designers judged by foreign experts and the best awarded with foreign internships. This May, Minsk’s Palace of Sports gathered designers from London, Berlin, Milan, Moscow, Vilnius, Barcelona and Riga, while guests from Copenhagen demonstrated clothes created by first-year students from the Danish Design School. “Scandinavians are notable for their minimalism. Their clothes are structural and architectural. We love to play with proportions, with clothes often not adjusted to individual figures,” explains the Danish Design School’s Rector, Gitte Christoffersen.
The Ukrainian brand of Golda was presented in Belarus for the first time. “A woman is a treasure. Clothes are her frame and they must accent — rather than shadow — the beauty of their owner,” stresses designer Golda Vinogradskaya. Her Unlike Anyone Else collection looks anew at soft knitwear, with coral, chocolate, maroon and beige colours reigning; each piece is extremely feminine.
Experts in fashion state that young Belarusians designers’ collections can be characterised as ‘incredibly chic, provocative and avant-garde’. Those with the most extravagant designs have been offered foreign internships, while four are to demonstrate their collections at the Russian Silhouette finals in Russia, representing Belarus. This year, 11 prкt-а-porter collections went down the runway; Olga Borodey, Maria Boyarovskaya, Yekaterina Burak, Leor Gofman, Anna Dragotsennaya, Yulia Latushkina, Natalia Lyakhovets, Yavazhina Miklashevich, Yekaterina Safonova and Apti Eziev gave a worthy show. They shall outline designs in Belarusian fashion in coming years.
The Belorussian Fashion Week (BFW) was organised for the second time this spring. Professional designers demonstrated their vision of 2011/2012 autumn-winter fashion. BFW primarily aims to create favourable conditions for prкt-а-porter development in Belarus, while promoting the popularisation of designer clothes. In Minsk, designers from Belarus, Russia, Ukraine, Serbia and elsewhere met, showing that Belarusian clothes can rival global brands.
Prigоzhaev Dima gave us a new collection of footwear, inspired by the Northern lights, using natural and lacquered leather, chamois and woollen linings in diverse colours. In turn, Boitsik offered women Office Romance for the forthcoming autumn-winter season. Irina Boitsik focused mainly on dresses from the 1940s-1950s and modern sheath dresses. Meanwhile, Lena Tsokalenko demonstrated her woman’s collection in delicate black, grey and beige tones, complemented with rich handwork.
Yanina Goncharova, who heads the Belorussian Fashion Week project, summed up the results, saying, “The catwalks met all rules, including seminars, show rooms and parties. Foreign colleagues joined Belarusian designers, showing that our industry is included in European processes.”
By Viktor Karafa
High demand for beautiful clothing
[b]Unique collections and new trends of Belarusian fashion showcased by designers from Belarus and Europe on Minsk catwalks [/b]Festivals of design art present us with new names in the field of fashion, with collections by young Belarusian designers judged by foreign experts and the best awarded with foreign internships. This May, Minsk’s Palace of Sports gathered designers from London, Berlin, Milan, Moscow, Vilnius, Barcelona and Riga, while guests from Copenhagen demonstrated clothes created by first-year students from the Danish Design School.
