PFF 2011 recap
It is a sad fact of life that I cannot use all of the available hours to amuse myself. It was unfortunate that I couldn’t take time off work during the festival to enjoy all that was on offer around the city – not just the shows at Fashion Paramount – Hackett Hall at the state museum.
Notably, I would have liked to attend 140 William’s 140 Fashion Parade at the GPO building. It would have been nice to catch Alister Yiap’s latest offering along with Genevieve Daley’s Unsunk Funk. The name alone sounds fun.
images supplied by Perth Fashion Festival.
Then, there was Outskirts in Northbridge where local talents gather together to pitch an interesting shopping area for all things quirky and exciting. And there was an outdoor screen area showing live fashion shows. Nice and relaxing ways to enjoy shows, that was. The fact that it was free for the general public to watch these shows was brilliant.
I could also talk about what was good this year. I should really. After a few debacles in previous years, media access has been largely smooth this year thanks to the PR ladies for the festival. They had a two tier system (thank god for that) with two separate pits. I was given a pink lanyard which was great and that meant I didn’t have to muscle with press media guys (with white lanyards) for a spot. Each pit wasn’t even over crowded because it was well controlled. They knew exactly how many people they were going to allow in each pit.
The venue was great. Thank god for the museum for renting out the hall for PFF. The only thing was that the access to some seats were rather dangerous to get to where ladies wearing stilettos were having to jump up and down a high podium. Covering ugly coloured chairs with a long pieces of calico was a bit lame. A set of white IKEA chairs would have been nice.
Someone must have re-discovered the right angle this year for the festival runway design. That is what someone I know mentioned during the festival. Yes, it was rectangle at GPO and L shape at fashion paramount. Perhaps, we’ll see oval shaped runways next year; in the media pit we banter on and talk meaningless gibberish for fun.
It was also great that there was more of a focus on local design talent and less on retail outlets. I was thrilled to have found an androgynous label Zsadar by Shane Newton.
I suppose the biggest thing was the huge focus on solo shows by notable designers. All five shows I’ve seen were of high calibre. It would have been nice if there were less digital print garments but hey, that’s just me moaning.
One thing that bugged me a lot was some [insert appropriate expletive] walking across the white runway while PFF volunteers were busy scrubbing black scuff marks off the nice white runway, kneeling down on the floor just before the STM Swimsuit show. I don’t know the guy’s name but I’ve seen him around at each festival. What an inconsiderate [and again] he was? Then again, when the audience started pouring in they stomped across and the once pristine white runway was less than pristine by the time the show began. One could call all that a part of the fashion show drama.
I also would not forget the gasps and banter we had when we found out the lighting condition for Chrissie Catling’s S2 show. We were screaming out – Is this it? Are you F&^%^ kidding me? Oh well, let’s just all go home eh?. Yes, rather dramatic. Well, it was just one of those shows. It was fine. It was a great show. Our cameras’ light sensitivity settings were pushed to the max to capture what was visible. What we got in the end were grainy images showing barely visible models. That was what the designer wanted – the experience and atmosphere. In the end, I won’t remember STM Swimsuit or any other shows in any great details but I’ll forever remember S2 show. Perhaps that was the point?
I was a little sad because I didn’t catch the Student Runway. I’m however determined to catch all the graduate shows to make up for it. I just hope that the course coordinator at each college does contact me for their shows. I know I’m going to the Curtin University’s graduate show which is due to be held in Midland. Ha, I’ll be their house photographer for the second year running. Very excited.
I always remind myself how remarkable Perth Fashion Festival is considering the population and the market size of the city and its state. Thanks to all the volunteers and organisers, designers and their assistants. I have to also show my gratitude for inviting me to all those wonderful shows so that I can share the experience with people. Happy days.
