If not seasons: Alternative Structures In Fashion and Art

Date and Time:

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5 March, Saturday - 2pm to 3:30pm

Level 2, Design Orchard

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Designers, artists and a fashion retailer discuss how they are creating structures for making, showing and selling their work.

What structures are they creating? What is it to create in ways beyond what the public expects?

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Panelists:

Tina Tan-Leo

Divaagar

Wykidd Song 

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Moderator:

Nadya Wang

Panelists Bios

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Divaagar

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Divaagar is a visual artist who works through installation, performance, and digital media. Their practice examines narratives; toying with attachments and proposing new models through the lenses of bodies, identities and environments.

Divaagar (b. 1992, he/she/they) graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (1st Class Honours) in Fine Arts from LASALLE College of the Arts in 2018 and has exhibited both locally and internationally since 2010. They had two solo presentations thus far; Between a rock and a hard place, as part of a Summer residency in Untitled Space (Shanghai) and The Soul Lounge, soft/WALL/studs (Singapore). Notable exhibitions include Time Passes, Singapore Art Museum (Singapore), State of Motion 2021: [Alternate / Opt] Realities,, Marina One (Singapore), and Space Oddities, The Substation (Singapore).

Tina Tan-Leo

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Tina Tan Leo for over 30 years was the pioneer that introduced more than 70 prominent global brands into Singapore and South East Asia and represented these labels in the Asian region. She is recognized in the luxury world as a dynamic and passionate fashion lifestyle businesswoman widely recognized and well regarded by her peers as a true arbiter of impeccable taste. Tina is well known as the woman responsible for bringing in renowned luxury fashion labels like Versace, Vera Wang, Roberto Cavalli, ETRO, Prada, Donna Karen, Herve Leger, Sergio Rossi, Giuseppe Giannotti, Chavet, John Lobb, Christian Louboutin, Manolo Blanik, Jimmy Choo, Dolce & Gabbana, Christian Lacroix, Chloe, Givenchy, Judith Leiber, Miss Sixty just to name a few to Singapore and the region.

 

Wykidd Song

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We’re never too far away from home. The adage rings true for Wykidd Song, a multi-hyphenate fashion designer with an impressive international portfolio. Not only is he back in his home country of Singapore, but he’s also reconnected with his creative roots through AKINN.

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With a career than began in Milan and London, Wykidd Song put his name on the radar with the launch of Song & Kelly in 1994. The brand, which Wykidd co-founded with Ann Kelly, made its debut in Singapore and quickly became a favourite among the cosmopolitan crowd. In a few short years, it caught the attention of Christina Ong of Club 21Global and made it the first Singapore brand to be brought into the stables of this international retail conglomerate.

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As that chapter of his career came to a close in 2007, Wykidd immersed himself in other creative outlets: started his design studio called WK Design and got into projects such as designing fine  jewellery in collaboration with Singapore brand, Soo Kee Jewellery. He was also commissioned to design the official attire for the APEC leaders during the 2009 Singapore Summit. There really was no rest for the wickedly talented, as he also began work on his eponymous menswear label. From one project to the next, Wykidd eventually found himself settling in Hong Kong where he was headhunted to lead the design team for a fashion brand there. 

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Wykidd’s philosophy has always been that design is more than just an aesthetic execution - it is meant to have function and substance, enhancing positive feelings through sensory experiences. Having been part of the fashion industry for many years, he saw the proliferation of fast fashion. The once dynamic and vibrant scene became excessive and wasteful - consisting of weekly deliveries that were quickly put together with no attention to quality, no originality, and no interesting story.

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After his return to Singapore, he felt a renewed energy urging him to create a platform where design, craft, and human stories converge, where lasting quality is more important than instant gratification. Hence, the concept of AKINN was born with the hope of cultivating responsible consumption with apparels that go beyond trends or seasons. Each collection unravels the stories of people who inspires Song. 

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From his past ventures, Wykidd learnt the importance of marketing for any brand to be successful, so he sought the expertise of James Chua, a close friend who owns a marketing consultancy agency in Singapore, GERMS. Together, they venture towards launching a distinctive approach towards design with AKINN. 

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Looking ahead, Wykidd’s vision is for AKINN is to evolve into a collaborative platform where he brings together creatives with the same philosophy and principles, across multiple design disciplines such as jewellery, art, and home accessories to co-create exquisite pieces that befits the sophisticated tastes of design enthusiasts. 
 

Nadya Wang

Nadya Wang is Founder and Editor of Art & Market and Fashion & Market, which present specialist content on practices within the Southeast Asian art and fashion communities respectively. She is also a lecturer in the School of Fashion at LASALLE College of the Arts, Singapore. 

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