Photography by Stefan Gosatti
Gary Bigeni, Spring/Summer 2009 Runway Photo: Cultures In Between
Australian born designer Gary Bigeni who graduated from Sydney’s Fashion East Institute in 2002, has been endeavouring to carve his own signature and brand identity who has previously worked under Australian London based designer Josh Goot. Josh Goot previously showed at New York Fashion Week during Spring 2009 and Spring 2007 and his latest at London Fashion Week, the designer’s focus on tie-dye italian yarn dresses with the overtone of tailoring has fortified his strengths as an individual designer. But this is Gary we’re talking about and in contrast, he has been cleverly accessing an Australian market that could embrace a sense of nonchalant sophistication without being overbearing nor dowdy, not forgetting that designing for the contemporary Australian woman still remains a bit sly, restless and playful. His charm, wit and personality cannot be contained and is an analogy to his clothes which are created as serious as any seasonal designer, for which he is now. With a wacky dress sense, that would be as comparable to an Australian Henrik Vibskov, this season brought the clarity which needed to be defined. Throughout the collection, a series and combinations of sumptuous wool jersey and silk jersey draped dresses were channeling points to have considered as he begun to condense the properties of these wonderful fabrics as the cornerstone of his technical ability. His skill in draping proceeded first off with Australian model Myf Shepherd wearing a silk jersey jacket and black spandex pants, then followed by sheer georgette shoulder tops, aqua and silk purple wool merino and Italian yarn elongated dresses. A silk purple slinged back singlet top was knotted as a cami-like shoulder cape with further advancements in dresses that were draped and worn off-shoulder. Abridging with a modern edge were the clear and distinctive golden zippers placed carefully back centre or front centre or in other cases, down waist side which further emphasised the fluidity and dynamics of a collection titled, ‘Beside Ourselves’. Gary seemed very focus on the proportion and lengths of his slinged softened dresses for which weren’t overpowered or over complicated. The balanced design in draping gave enough volume which in the end, refracted the collection’s female DNA.
