FASHION EVENTS - BANGKOK

By Eva Fydrych

SIAM PARAGON ASIAN COUTURE FASHION WEEK 2012

27 - 30 September 2012 

Key visual (Photo courtesy of Fide Fashion Weeks)

Siam Paragon, Thailand’s world-class shopping destination and regional fashion hub, is partnering Singapore’s event and multimedia firm, Fide Multimedia Pte Ltd, to stage Asia’s first couture fashion extravaganza entitled ‘Siam Paragon Asian Couture Fashion Week 2012’ (SICFW2012). This exclusive fashion week celebrates Her Majesty Queen Sirikit of Thailand’s 80th Anniversary this year and honours Her Majesty’s dedication to preserve and promote traditional Thai textiles. The focus on couture fashion is also inspired by the elegance of Her Majesty’s exquisite costumes while reflecting the artistry of Thai designers and the creations of internationally acclaimed couturiers outside of France.

The event, endorsed by Thailand’s Ministry of Culture, showcases special collections of couture fashion created by celebrated Thai designers and internationally acclaimed couturiers from 27-30 September 2012 at Royal Paragon Hall, 5th Floor, Siam Paragon Shopping Center, Bangkok.

Top Thai and international designers have come together to create a first-ever international couture event in Asia that includes exquisite Thai silk and hand-made Thai silk from the Arts and Crafts Centre of Thailand under the concept of ‘The Queen of Silk.’

Chadatip Chutrakul, Chief Executive Officer of Siam Paragon Shopping Center said, “Siam Paragon is widely acclaimed as a fashion hub and we are proud to continue our support of this industry in which our homegrown talents continue to excel. Siam Paragon Asian Couture Fashion Week 2012 represents another important step in this exciting story and provides an ideal opportunity to celebrate the 80th anniversary of Her Majesty the Queen while honouring her many initiatives in promoting our kingdom’s traditional textiles.”

Kriengsak Tantiphipop, Executive Chief Marketing Officer of Siam Paragon Shopping Center said that this event has resulted from the excellent collaboration between Siam Paragon and Fide Multimedia of Singapore. Thailand’s Ministry of Culture and the private sector have also contributed to the staging of this major fashion event. Costing a total of 50 million baht to stage, The Royal Paragon Hall on the 5th Floor Siam Paragon will be transformed into a stunning and inspiring setting that befits to present this world-class fashion show.

Frank Cintamani, Group CEO of Fide Multimedia and International Chairman of the Siam Paragon Asian Couture Fashion Week 2012 said that Asia has enjoyed considerable economic and social development and success for many years. In particular, it has risen to become one of the most sophisticated regions in the world for its appetite and appreciation for luxury, fashion and lifestyle. It was therefore, both timely and appropriate that Haute Couture, was presented in Singapore last year.

Thailand for its part, he said, has long been associated with creativity, artistry and an inherent flair for fashion and design. Given the exceptional values that couture represents, it is fitting that Bangkok’s inaugural Asian Couture Fashion Week 2012 should be presented at Siam Paragon, a retail destination whose reputation for excellence, luxury and refinement is unsurpassed in Asia.

The Siam Paragon Asian Couture Fashion Week, will bring together some of the world’s most esteemed and acclaimed couturiers and designers alongside renowned Thai designers. In doing so it will continue to celebrate and promote couture across the region and bring Thailand and Asia to an increasing prominence in the global world of fashion. The week will also recognise designers in the region who exhibit an exceptional level of craftsmanship and ingenuity in their work.

“Given the professionalism, flair and ambition of the Siam Paragon management team, I have no doubt that Siam Paragon Asian Couture Fashion Week 2012 will prove to be a tremendous success in presenting exceptional couture, fashion and luxury. I am deeply honoured to have been appointed International Chairman of this important event in the fashion calendar and am excited that both my team at Fide Multimedia and I will be able to contribute through the expertise and experience gained at Haute Couture Week Singapore and Women’s Fashion Week Singapore,” Mr Cintamani added.

The three Thai fashion designers whose work will be showcased at the event include founder Somchai Songwattana and long time principle designer Chamnan Pakdeesuk of FLYNOW; acclaimed veteran designer Nagara Sambandaraksa from NAGARA, who is well-known for his use of Thai silk and fusion of contemporary eastern and western designs; as well as Sirichai Daharanond of THEATRE, who brings his 28 years of couture experience to this premiere fashion event.

Top international designers are represented by a host of legendary names, such as French couturier Christophe Josse – one of the world’s most renowned ‘Grand Couturiers’, a prestigious title and accolade granted only to the most talented Haute Couture designers by the exclusive French fashion governing body La Chambre Syndicale de la Haute Couture.

Singapore’s renowned couturier, Frederick Lee, celebrated for creating one-of-its-kind wedding and evening gowns of ultimate glamour is one of the most sought after designers in Singapore and around the region. His exquisite cutting-edge couture creations are such showstoppers that he is often commissioned to design for events and invited to represent Singapore in the realm of fashion.

Another celebrated Asian designer showcasing his spectacular creations at the prestigious SICFW2012 is Paris-based Korean Lie Sang Bong, often referred to as “the Korean McQueen” for his outstanding style and vision.

Representing Japan is one of the country’s most celebrated designers, Yumi Katsura, who is renowned for her magnificent bridal creations. Her unique silhouette inspired by the 19th century kimono was introduced in 1981 and is still recognized today as perfection in style that appeals to brides around the world.

Siam Paragon Asian Couture Fashion Week 2012 consists of a celebration of the 80th anniversary of Her Majesty Queen Sirikit, under the concept of ‘The Queen of Thai Silk’ and with which the participating designers honour Her Majesty’s dedication to Thailand’s national textile heritage with the creation of a special collection of couture pieces in fine Thai silk from the Support Foundation under the Patronage of Her Majesty Queen Sirikit.

The fashion show itself is essentially in the form of a cultural exchange in fashion with top Thai and international couture fashion designers showcasing their special couture collections for the first time in Asia.

The pioneering fashion event also presents ‘Pen Yoo Kue H.M. the Queen Sirikit’, an exhibition by the Queen Sirikit Museum of Textiles that features images from the ‘Pen Yoo Kue H.M. The Queen’ book together with clothes and objects such as silk used in early courts, fabric from Baan Nern Tammang, Nakorn Sri Thammarat and, shown for the first time, a Khon costume presented by H.M. The Queen.

Siam Paragon Asian Couture Fashion Week 2012 is supported by Samsung, Directional Automobiles Development (DAD), Citibank, Leica, Nars, DHL Express, Siam Kempinski, Absolut Vodka and Thai Airways. For more information, please visit www.fidefashionweeks.com.

Source: Fide Fashion Weeks

All photos courtesy of Fide Fashion Weeks

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