Los Angeles Fashion Week: Here is what’s going on where
By the time Paris Fashion Week officially ends Wednesday, the latest installment of Los Angeles Fashion Week will already be a few days old. The presentation of designers’ fall and winter 2015 collections was to get underway Saturday with Concept Los Angeles’ showcase of a handful of labels (including Jen Awad, Camelia Skikos, Venezuela’s Camila X Castillo and organizer Mike Vensel’s namesake line) at Hollywood’s Beachwood Studios.
Assorted runway shows, presentations, installations and parties sponsored by various entities are scheduled to continue through March 22.
The most notable change in the LAFW landscape is the emergence of a new organization called Art Hearts Fashion, which staged its first handful of shows here in October and is set to return with the promise of 30 designers over four days at a Hollywood wedding and banquet hall venue called the Taglyan Complex.
It’s scheduled to kick things off Monday with designer Sue Wong, who follows her spring and summer 2015 “fairies and sirens” runway extravaganza with the showing of her “mythos and goddesses” fall and winter wares. Other designers on the docket include MT Costello, Mister Triple X, House of Li Jon, Artistix Jeans, Beso Moda, Shout Out! Clothing and Pedram Couture.
Also joining the Art Hearts Fashion lineup will be Project Ethos, a long-running fashion, art and music showcase that usually takes place during L.A.’s fashion week as a stand-alone event. Open to the public (tickets range from $20 to $100 for limited VIP front-row seats), this season’s mix of Project Ethos fashion shows (including Liberty Garden, Lubov Tumanova, Hale Bob and Nicole Miller), live art and DJ sets is scheduled to take place beginning at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday. Additional information is available at projectethos.tv.
In an effort to promote its brands directly to the public, Art Hearts Fashion also opened an 800-square-foot pop-up shop March 1 at the Sweet! Hollywood candy store in the Hollywood & Highland shopping center. Scheduled to be open at least through the end of May, it’s stocking pieces by participating designers including Sue Wong, Tumbler and Tipsy and Mister Triple X.
“This spot is prime real estate for tourists,” said Art Hearts Fashion organizer Erin Whitaker. “It’s great for us to be able to have a spot to react with that traffic and introduce these brands to tourists and people who wouldn’t necessarily know about them or about Los Angeles Fashion Week in general.”
Whitaker says that a portion of all boutique sales will be donated to the group’s charitable partner, the AIDS Healthcare Foundation.
Another organization, Los Angeles Fashion Council, is to return to the former L.A. Mart building downtown (now known as the Reef), where it has once again partnered with Maker City L.A. for a two-day stand of runway shows and presentations including Stella Proseyn, Rose La Grua, William Bradley, Mila Hermanovski, Michael Ngo, Braulia Avina, Sauri, Rochelle Carino and Linden. While organizers of this event have traditionally focused on showcasing local up-and-coming design talent, this season includes a label from farther afield, Paris-based Vilorija — a step toward the group’s plan to eventually add a third day dedicated to brands from beyond Southern California.
Style Fashion Week is scheduled to close out the calendar with a five-day run March 18 to 22 at a yet-to-be-announced tented venue in downtown L.A. According to organizers, the slate of participating designers includes Nikki Lund, Andre Soriano, Coco Johnsen, Ophelia Song, Nancy Vuu, Daiki Shimizu and Quynh Paris.
