25 May 2016 at 9:00 am
Runway to New Zealand
An ambitious project designed to raise awareness of New Zealand’s high quality fashion design programmes in India and encourage greater cultural awareness of India among the participating Kiwi fashion students culminated in a high-impact fashion show in New Delhi on 12 May 2016.
Runway to New Zealand was the result of a collaboration between fashion schools from AUT and Massey University, and two leading fashion institutions in India, the National Institute of Fashion Technology and the Pearl Academy. The project was supported by ENZ and by India’s premier fashion body, the Fashion Design Council of India.
Runway to New Zealand brought together six two-person teams of Kiwi and Indian student designers to create collections on the theme of ‘Future World Connections’. The project required the students to put together a ‘Think New’ collection using Indian sustainable fabrics to produce next generation contemporary garments.
The Indian judging panel and other officials L-R: John Laxon, ENZ; Varun Bahl, designer; Amit Aggarwal, designer; Sunil Sethi, FDCI; Rohit Bal, designer; Rina Dhaka, designer; HE Grahame Morton, High Commissioner; Jugnu Roy, ENZ
A panel of celebrity Indian judges judged each team’s efforts. The Indian students from the two winning teams secured two-week internships at the participating New Zealand fashion schools, where they will gain first-hand experience of New Zealand’s innovative teaching style.
The Kiwi students had the opportunity to spend a couple of weeks in India leading up to the fashion show, when they could see and touch the beautiful locally-produced fabrics, and observe local processing techniques and artisanship.
Aishwarya Jain and Claire Nicholson from the other winning team from AUT University, and their ‘Dystopia’ garments
The project has initiated discussions between the participating institutions that may well result in further exciting partnerships and collaborations.
Runway to New Zealand has boosted the profile of New Zealand as a high quality destination for fashion studies among the Indian aspirants. The event was attended by high profile Indian fashion media, resulting in coverage across a variety of outlets.
