EPSON and John Herrera does ARMADA

I was fortunate enough to have seen the last collection that EPSON and John Herrera worked on and eventually won with during London Fashion Week. It was named AGILA after the majestic Philippine Eagle (aka Monkey Eating Eagle) which now is the national bird of the Philippines. John Herrera was just like most of you, when he began with this process he wasn't much of a techie. He didn't have the know how on doing prints and designing and style was just his talent. He needed help in making his analog talent be translated to digital art which EPSON provided a platform for. Mind you it wasn't easy, but as you may know, there's no stopping a talented Filipino.

He was very candid, no frills, very humble when we met him. We discussed his latest work over tea and if you're a fan of his work, you could sense his collection has that signature John Herrera look. The cuts, the lines somehow had similarities with his previous work and you could note how it actually looks more modern now, more structured but still feminine. We laughed a bit when he told us if he could wear these pieces, he would. It all looks so gorgeous even if we didn't see it worn by models that afternoon.

Here's what he said during our interview:

"They first told me to do prints, I initially said no, but I got inspired and used visual images that did have an impact. I felt I came from the ice age, a bit primitive when it comes to technology. In this collection, I worked with digital artists to churn out my vision for printing. This collection was easier than the last one because we knew the process already. We didn't have problems anymore." 

In describing this series he adds "The collection is about the Spanish armada, it was the map where ships, the coat of arms of the Spanish king, the small lines, we blew it up and made it into black, white and gray lines. I had to re-layout so it would show up on the clothes. The collection had me thinking about the discovery of the Philippines. You will see capes, coats, a little like what they wore during their trip to the Philippines. I always dreamed of this and I don't think I'll ever have to buy prints because their printers are incredible."

"I adore these pieces and they have made sure the ink they used is earth friendly which is mostly from plant pigments - and even safe for babies. It's also acid free and breathes with our body, you can feel it in the fabric. All of them are printed as I create, some are complicated and you'll see it even better when they move. Some of these are quite simple,  even if it was made easy it still looks good. We diminished making the back seams and that is a difficult process in designing."

"I personally am not a colorful person, it was just like making it like how the voyagers used to wear. It's something that I think London women would also wear, even if all of these are being designed in the tropics. Epson has a list of synthetic fibers that I could work with, it can print on organza and tool. Now I can print on transparent and flowy textile, during fitting it was majestic on the model. The lack of digital knowledge was just the problem, but everything else was solved by Epson and my team."

 

"This is my 25th collection and it's a mix of creatives and wearables. I make the garment stand without much bulk, the process is now easy because of technology. We can make this easy in patterns now. You always have to learn things, you never stop learning."

I also asked him about vying for another contest with these pieces but he says "There are times you have to stop joining competitions because it will be counter productive to your brand. This is meant for people to wear. It's not easy, in the beginning we just had to be known. I'm glad Vogue noticed so that opened a lot of doors for me. September 16, Fashion Scout will be streaming it live and Epson will stream it live again including the johnherreraofficial facebook page where you will see the BTS from time to time."

EPSON has been the premier go to brand for quality industrial grade textile printers perfect for production of lovely fabrics. From the likes of Epson SureColor SC-F7270 Dye-Sublimation Textile Printer, the SureColor SC-F6270 44 in dye-sublimation transfer printer, the Epson SureColor SC-F9270, the Epson SureColor SC-P10070, EPSON has tons of Large Format Printers that can do the job. 

The details of the clothes that they've worked on looked stunning on the mannequins so if this actually fits as good as the models on the runway, it'll surely take your breath away. You'll be taken to a period where you'll feel and understand why the Philippines has it's rich history, seeing the beauty of the islands that have been colonized by Spain for over 300 years. Make sure you follow and like the pages of EPSON Philippines, John Herrera as mentioned earlier. It's definitely worth to see how they've been working hard making this Spring/Summer 2018 line and breathe life to it. I'm watching!

EPSON x John Herrera: The AGILA Collection

I have seen his work a few years ago and it's been a while since I have seem him do a show in Manila. John Herrera has taken the world by storm by winning London Emerging Designer Awards back in 2015. He's known for his very detailed workmanship, drama, couture and travel inspired collections in the past and the award has paved the way and gave a lot of opportunities for the Filipino designer. 

He's gone to the limits, even the fine line of proper designed garments and textures which he finds interesting so he goes the mile to include it in his pieces. This time however, he worked with world renowned printer brand EPSON to create his new collection called AGILA (The Philippine Eagle), a mix of art and technology, a feat which he found very challenging. He's up for it though (judging from his reaction during the short interview in Shangri-la Plaza) and even though this process would mean printing his own fabrics, he trusted the people who made his vision into reality (graphic design and Photoshop included), and of course the lovely EPSON Sure Color F-series (which are dye sublimation digital textile printers) namely the Sure Color SC F9270 and the SC 6270.

Sure Color SC F9270 (top) and the SC 6270 (bottom)

These printers are designed for industrial level roll production. So imagine how you would be able to print your designs in fabric, the possibilities are endless! For designers, fashion enthusiasts and those who would like to have their original work make into an excellent outfit that your clients would be proud of to wear. This definitely will make prints that could get your images in the forefront of fashion, isn't that what people want in the first place?

I particularly like the hoodie coat that Mark McMahon wore during the press preview. It's edgy, the print was intricately detailed and quite uncommon. It's very neo-Japanese but still got that persona of the Philippine Monkey Eating Eagle done in feathers, actual bird images and colors in white shiny fabric. I also like the light quilting on some of the pieces (the jackets, the kimonos, don't get me started!), the bias cut skirts which he had later on in the show, the flowy printed scarf dress,  Oh and if you're already impressed with the output, this is actually the first time he's done this. That right there is pushing the envelope and the 30 piece collection done that night was equally stunning!

Here's photos from his IG account, credits to their house photographer:

I think the AGILA collection will also be shown in London a couple of weeks from now. Who would have known that a printer could do this right? I'm very impressed, just wished I brought my camera on the runway show though, perhaps next time! Thank you for the opportunity to cover your event EPSON Philippines! This is really unbelievable!

Photo credits: http://johnherreracouture.com/

For those who want to see the printers and more, check out https://www.epson.com.ph/. For John Herrera's work, take a look at his line over at http://johnherreracouture.com/.

KUMAGCOW

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iACADEMY at The N.E.W. Fashion and Beauty Fair - Rockwell Tent

I've been hearing about iACADEMY for the longest time and I've never even stepped inside their school yet.

The better alternative came to my email a few days ago when we got invited to the iACADEMY gig at The New Fashion and Beauty Fair 2013 in Rockwell Tent Makati.

The Information and Communications Technology Academy offers fashion courses aside from their current BS Animation, BS Computer Science specializing in Software Engineering, BS Information Technology specializing in Web Development, BS Business Administration specializing in Marketing and Advertising, BS Game Development (on which I want to enroll soon maybe) and AB Multimedia Arts and Design.

They don't have graduates on the Fashion Design course yet because this is their first batch, but it looks promising. The event had a part where designers would be able to showcase their clothes and model too. They've got really a full circle approach in this course where you would be able to figure out what particular field you would do good in says Ms. Nicole Aquino, Chairperson of the Fashion Program at iACADEMY Philippines. The goal is to ultimately be one of the noted Fashion Schools in the country. All fashion lovers should be in the lookout for institutions that would hone what they already have innately. Young and fresh.. they've got to follow their passion and look forward to even make their talent shine, a bit more than the usual.

They even got some pieces displayed that afternoon and I like some of them. These are students, so to see intricate work done on some of them were a welcome sight. That's the "promising" thing I mentioned a while ago. Then there was more.

I also saw Ms. Pia Gladys Perey being interviewed by ETC together with some other personalities (I did that on purpose).

I also saw Renan Jay Pacson who makes SUPERGREAT jackets. I wanted one but I'm sure it won't fit me awwww. This guy's really talented and I like the fact that most of his work is "one of a kind" so you won't see other people wearing things of the same design when you get something from him. He's won awards btw, you should look him up. Maybe I will have one custom made in my size LOL.