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concept korea

September 12, 2013

NYFW Spring 2014: Concept Korea, Fashion Shenzhen

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concept korea

[Image via ELLE.com]

Concept Korea is described as a “global fashion project” that is now celebrating it’s eighth season. These shows are supported by the Korean government in order to publicize Korea’s fashion culture to the international market while helping Korean designers gain attention on a more global scale.

This year’s show featured four brands who showcased their unique talents and collections. One collection from Big Park by Park Youn Soo in particular drew inspiration from a folk art image of a phoenix and this colorful motif was stitched on pieces such as jackets, dresses and shorts. Each collection succeeded in getting large rounds of applause from the audience and everyone walked away with a better understanding of what Korea has to offer in the world of design.

Pieces from Bennis Costume

Pieces from Bennis Costume

Fashion Shenzhen is a platform that showcases leading designers hailing from China’s third largest city, Shenzhen. Presented during New York Fashion Week, the presentation involved installations and pop up boutiques from 15 international designers whose collections ranged from preppy polo looks to evening wear gowns that would be readily adopted into many American closets. Showing in New York helps these designers reach a larger, more international market and as the saying goes, if you can make it here, you can make it anywhere.

September 9, 2012

New York Fashion Week Spring 2013 Collections: Ruffian, Concept Korea

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[Image via ELLE.com]

The Show: Ruffian Spring/Summer 2013 Runway

The Theme: Toile; A Love of Couture within the context of Williamsburg, Brooklyn

The Color Palette: Subtle tones of springtime- blues, pinks, yellows and whites with hints of navy

Best/Collection’s Signature Standout Look: As hip, cool models walked the runway at the Ruffian show, the audience was invited to hang in the coolest neighborhood, exactly where designers Brian Wolk and Claude Morais live- Williamsburg, Brooklyn. As diverse as the neighborhood that inspired them, the collection focused on the juxtaposition of street style versus runway, baroque with minimalism and luxury fabrics with classic Americana shapes. All topped off with high-poofed hair and Converse Chuck Taylor sneaks, the great designs from Ruffian connected various generations and aesthetics. Highlights included to die for boy blazers, sexy corsets and beautiful blouses, all sporting a Brooklyn-inspired toile pattern created especially for Ruffian. Complimented by ticking stripes and brocades, preppy never looked so bad-ass.

[Image via MBFashionWeek.com]

The Show: Concept Korea Fashion Collective Spring/Summer 2013

The Theme: Five Korean Traditional Colors- The interpretations of the five colors and their meanings: Red symbolizing fire; black for water; blue for tree; white for iron; yellow for ground.

The Color Palette:  Red, black, blue, white and yellow

Best/Collection’s Signature Standout Look: Concept Korea features five standout designers from the Korean culture.  This year’s collaboration included CHOIBOKO by Choi Bo Ko, CRES.E. DIM. by Hongbum Kim, KYE by Kathleen Kye, Lie sang bong by Lie Sang Bong and SON JUNG WAN by Son Jung Wan.  While the color palette and theme was focused on the Korean traditional colors, there was nothing traditional about the selected designs displayed by each designer.  An array of prints, shapes, drapes and details expertly displayed why Korea and its fashion designers are a force to be reckoned with.  In a unique display of fashion, each designer showcased their interpretations on their own mini-stage. The inspiration of color, nature and design crafted the beauty that is Korean design.

–Amanda Zeigler

*Sorrelli for Fashion Pulse Daily Exclusive New York Fashion Week Runway Coverage

February 19, 2011

Fall 2011 Collections: Concept Korea, Sergio Davila

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[On left, General Idea, at right, DO HO. Images by Nick Cuppari]

Concept Korea:

This season, Concept Korea presented the collections of DO HO, General Idea, Lie Sang-bong Paris, and Steve J & Yoni P. Their ambition to generate a sense of Korean style into the New York fashion scene has been a success, with notable fashion trends now visible in both cultures.
Designer DO HO chose to embellish the upper body with fur coats, over-sized collars, and gold jewelry, balancing it out with skin-tight bottoms and polished low ponytails. Choosing muted natural colors, like green, plum, yellow, crème. and brown, allowed her to vary the types of fabrics used, without over doing it.
Choi Bum Suk designer of General Idea, showed menswear, which embodied the boyish charm of a student in Korea, with seasonal sweaters, cropped denim, knit shorts, and bubble leg warmers. The clothing was both fashion forward and durable, a pairing becoming more common in New York, especially for winter-wear.
Presenting a more refined collection was Lie Sang-bong. The black and nude colored pieces were glammed-up with bright gold accessories and embellishments. Long tapered skirts walked a mini runway, accenting the female shape and showing the mobility and flow of the fabric.
The final designers, Steve Jung and Yoni Pai, took a different root. A mix between Aztec patterns, grudge t-shirts and leather jackets brought a completely contrasting nuance to the show. Bright red lips and wispy teased hair added to the devious temperament of the rock and roll nature.

[Images via MercedesBenzFashionWeek.com]

Sergio Davila

Sergio Davila’s Fall/Winter 2011 collection was a representation of lustful magnetism. On every model, assorted textures and subtle royal colors manifested the alluring nature of the clothing. The timeless sensibility of the collection is globally relevant, allowing the garments to speak for themselves, in all dialects. The brown toned silk scarves on the men and the sheer mysterious blouses on the women are just two examples of this, establishing an elegant connection between New York and South America.

-Nick Cuppari

September 14, 2010

Anne Bowen, Christian Siriano, Cushnie et Ochs, and Concept Korea Spring 2011 Collections

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Anne Bowen

Guests of Anne Bowen‘s show were treated to a lot of  leg, super-high heels, and tight dresses with flowing trains and sashes at her Spring 2011 collection. The theme was “deconstructed formality;” uber short, uber sexy pieces with both soft and edgy masculine elements, like a delicate sash billowing off a taupe one-shoulder or a blue pinstripe short suit. The designer kept the color palette muted, with a majority of silver and nude. Known for her bridal wear, Bowen did not disappoint, as the finale piece was a Swarovski crystal beaded asymmetrical one-shouldered number. Daring brides who are ready to show some skin and leg on their big day now know where to look.

[Images via Elle.com]

Christian Siriano

There were 4o reasons to celebrate at Project Runway sensation Christian Siriano’s Spring 2011 collection. The king of “fierce”  maintained the impeccable craftsmanship and returned to the drama that made him the winner of PR Season Four, with pieces inspired by his travels in  Africa, Asia, and the Mediterranean. The travel inspiration was evident from the first look:  white slim fit pants and a cognac “safari chic” leather jacket, right through to his last creation —  the fiery red tulle concoction was wonderfully impractical, yet consistent with Siriano’s over-the-top elaborate aesthetic.

[Images via  Elle.com]

Cushnie et Ochs

Design team Carly Cushnie and Michelle Ochs know how to put on a show. From the eerily wafting fog to the ethereal trip-hop soundtrack, the Cushnie et Ochs show was a cohesive experience, seemingly less about the glaring-lights-go-go-go routine of other shows and more about a sultry method of displaying the much more fluid collection this season. Less evident were some of the skin-tight, monotone mini-dresses, replaced with looser shifts in solids and the collection’s signature gray, peach and white floral print. Nevertheless, for the strong, empowered Cushnie et Ochs woman, the usual suspects — sheer elements, sharp cut-outs, and surprising pops of leather – are here to stay.


[Images via mbfashionweek.com]

Concept Korea

Three designers, three shows within a show, three very different visions. Kwak Hyun Joo, Juyoung Lee, and Lee Jean Youn came together to create a show that was fun yet serious and crafted, with mixed media (videos kicking off each designer’s collection on a huge plasma screen at the head of the runway) and mixed sexes. Pucca by Hyun Joo featured pop art —  comic book-like prints that were a flirty, free cascade down the runway, with playful additions like ruffles on skirts, fluorescent mesh and tassels on strategically-placed shirt zippers. Lee’s men’s collection, Resurrection, was like an homage to Scottish Military Goth, if such a thing existed, with a sea of black punctuated by cargo pants under kilt-like pleated skirts and strappy, military shirts and jackets. Youn’s collection was an ending full of contrasts, mixing leather and feathers, snake skin and organza, salmon and black and throwing in a little bridal at the end for good measure.

-Kaci Hamilton

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