Dogpatch Cafe & Art Gallery, 2295 3rd St. is currently hosting “ReCreation”, an exhibition of artwork by Tuan Tran (May 7 – June 30, 2012). But before all that began, there was a Tuan Tran OriWear debut fashion show reception at said cafe on May 5. The evening’s event was a warm, intimate experience. Models, hair stylists, and the rest of the production team moved in a deceptively languid manner one hour before guests were scheduled to arrive. Fits were taken, hair and makeup were polished, and walking orders were established. The always dependable Ava Byrd was in the house and there was no frantic atmosphere to be found; it was almost too eerily quiet at one point, a very unfamiliar feeling for a fashion show that was about to happen in less than an hour.
Some conversations (thank you MannequinSF, you guys are such fine companies), candied bacon munchies, and a glass of wine later, the petit cafe started to get filled with guests and the show started roughly at 8 pm. Tuan Tran began the show by reminding the crowd of his first collection, WireWear. First debuted late last year, WireWear boasted recycled telephone wires as statement-making fashion. The hand-painted silk dresses, worn solo or underneath WireWear were especially breath-taking. At the end of the presentation, he brought out model Rebecca Case (super gorgeous and likeable gal, I must say) to demonstrate an example of his thinking process. With a piece of pink nylon, he tugged and pulled the unfinished dress to show what he has in mind for creating beautiful creations from recycled materials. See the gallery below for the first half of the fashion show:
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A short break after, the OriWear took the stage. To describe what OriWear is, let me quote a paragraph snippet from Tuan Tran’s site:
OriWear – is created by hand using re-purposed material. No sewing machines, no looms, no needles used in the birth of each garment! The technique has roots in an ancient Japanese tradition called Saki-Ori which is a technique that incorporates recycling as its main emphasis. OriWear is re-purposed cloth material crafted and sculpted to attain a level of beauty which defies the origin of the material.
Watching the garments took the center stage one by one was a humbling experience. Each of these garments took 100 – 250 hours (or more!) to make. The amount of details and myriad of colors presented showed a depth of care and aesthetic that’s perhaps still unique to Tuan alone. The dresses and men’s outfits project couture, but at the same time they also conveyed grounded, humble feeling, which was quite inspiring. For one who’s deep into making artful and sustainable fashion, Tuan Tran does know what he’s doing:
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Thank you once again Tuan, for inviting us to this OriWear debut fashion show, we will patiently wait for your next bout of creations!
Thanks for reading,
Musank
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