This year Sans Pareil are taking you to the iconic iD Dunedin Fashion Week.
We have been lucky enough to get some exclusive interviews with some of the designers in this event.
To finish up our iD Dunedin interview series we got to catch up with the legendry designer Tanya Carlson. We caught up with Tanya at her pop-up shop in Meridian Mall in Dunedin.
You've been involved with iD since its inception. What first got you involved?
I was part of the original team of the city’s designers and creative community behind the event which began way back in 1999. I’ve shown every year there has been a catwalk show and been on the iD organising committee since that time. Our original aim was to support and celebrate the city’s burgeoning fashion industry with a unique fashion event that took Dunedin fashion to the world. Five years on, we added the iD International Emerging Designer Awards which was a way of bringing the world’s fashion to Dunedin. Over the years the event has grown, from a one off catwalk show featuring Dunedin designers to a week of fashion events with the iD International Emerging Designer Awards as one of the major highlights.
What is your role in ID currently?
I am still on the organising committee behind the annual event. I am also the Head Judge (and a selector) of the iD International Emerging Designer Awards. I also support the event through showing a collection as part of the iD show.
How has the nz fashion landscape changed over the years?
Since I began my business in 1997, much has changed across the industry. When I began, most of the designers I was working alongside were producing small runs in New Zealand in workrooms. Technology allowed a lot of that to change and a lot of production moved offshore and producing in New Zealand became more challenging, however I have always made here. Over the years, the internet and social media created greater accessibility to global trends, which led to a real rise in fast fashion, but also on a more positive note has created an incredible fashion revolution of makers sharing ideas and concepts that has benefitted the industry. It feels like the industry in Aotearoa is moving back to those smaller locally made runs as more conscious consumers choose to support mindful fashion. Sustainability is also top of mind for the industry. For the new generation of designers, it is absolutely ingrained in their thinking and processes which fills me with real hope for the future of the industry.
As a judge what stands out to you from entrants?
From the selection day where we choose the finalists to the judging day where we choose winners, it’s always about the x factor – that fresh, new concept, idea, technology or story that surprises us. It can be hard to explain but it lies in that design excellence, the unique creativity and the connection with the collection that separates one emerging designer from another.
This year's winner, was just incredible, both design and technology wise. Why do you think they won?
When that collection came into the room on Judging Day, there was a collective intake of breath. It was mind-blowing – the juxtaposition of modernity with traditional tailoring; or these very technical fabrics, rendered in a tailored silhouette. There was a surprise element of this beautiful volume and softness, a delicacy almost that wasn’t expected from these self-inflating parachutes.
Carlson has been such an iconic NZ label for many years now. Do you come away from iD inspired in new ways? Does it influence your designing?
I always come away invigorated, feeling hopeful for the future of the industry. I am always impressed by the new skills, the technologies and the quality of fashion education. While it doesn’t necessarily influence my designs, it does remind me to push myself to be more experimental and to take risks.
Who are some designers from this year you tote as ones to watch?
All of the finalists earned their place in the competition and I believe they all have bright futures in the industry. I’m always excited to see where they go and what they do and I can’t wait to see what they do next.
What did you think about this year’s theme of environmental sustainability ?
What’s fantastic to see is that the concept of sustainability has moved so far on from when the finalists first started talking about their desire to make more sustainably 10 years ago. Now, the methods, processes and practices of sustainable design is at the forefront of all of their designs and practices. It’s exciting to see.
Lastly, will you be involved in NZFW this year? Any plans you can tell us?
Not at this stage.
