New Gen Z-Curated Exhibit Asks, “What Is Singapore Fashion”?

12 July 2022

What is Singapore fashion? The first iteration of the Asian Civilisations Museum (ACM)’s #SGFASHIONNOW showcase – a collaboration with LASALLE College of the Arts’ School of fashion, and the Textile and Fashion Federation (TaFF) – explored the concept by reinterpreting the design of cheongsams, kebayas, and other traditional costumes.

This year’s edition, which was also curated by a team of Gen Z fashion students, revisits the question with a new theme: Architecture of Drape.

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If you’re wondering what that means, consider the draping and wrapping required in the sarong, the sari, and the hijab. Then take a look at the ensembles below. In each of them, local designers navigate parallels between architecture and fashion by experimenting with shapes and with fabric manipulation.

The result is a showcase that 1) celebrates the diversity of Singapore via a diversity of designs, and 2) that gives a platform to both established and emerging designers. Ultimately, it “imagines the Singapore fashion industry as a construction site, for it is an ongoing project.”

In other words, rather than giving definitive answers, #SGFASHIONNOW invites visitors to have a conversation about Singapore fashion – it’s a work in progress, much like our individual identities, and our identity as a nation.

Check out some of the designs here:

**Maison THOMASWEE - One-seam shift dress, Collection of Thomas Wee.**Image courtesy of Asian Civilisations Museum

Fun Fact: While designing this dress, "King of Jacket" Thomas Wee eliminated all the elements he considers unnecessary, such as zips, buttons, hooks, belts, and joints, until all that was left was a piece of fabric and a single seam.