Oh well, Rajo Laurel! (Sabong News)

IT was the perfect confluence of fashion and philanthropy: Rajo Laurel’s 25th year as a fashion designer and Red Charity Gala’s 10th year. The year’s biggest fund-raising affair was held on Saturday night at the country’s biggest ballroom, the Marriott Hotel Manila. The gala is headed by socialites Tessa Prieto-Valdes and Kaye Tinga for the Philippine Red Cross, the projects of Assumption Class 1981, and the new Red Charity Fund for deserving students of Mint School of Fashion. The spectacle, directed by Robby Carmona, started with the Bench Holiday collection and international Filipina star and Rajo’s childhood friend Lea Salonga singing “The Journey,” echoing the designer’s path to style superstardom. Then reigning supermodels Jo Ann Bitagcol, Jasmine Maierhofer and Ria Bolivar opened the eleganza extravaganza in elaborate abaca sculptural creations. Unrestrained, Rajo unleashed about a hundred of his designs on the 250-meter runway. “The collection is called ‘Archipelago.’ It really began without a narrative. I’m normally a very methodical designer. I’m like to be very clear on what I’m doing, but for this particular experience, I wanted to create something almost without a narrative. Specifically, that there would be [creative] freedom. The reason I did it this way was, first and foremost, to be able to use natural materials—modern, indigenous materials. In fact, 75 percent of the collection is handmade,” the prolific designer explained. Earlier last year, he went to the Philippine Textile Research Institute to immerse himself on the different weaving communities around the Philippines: “From there, we began all these experimentations. For instance, I was very lucky I was able to learn from Narda Capuyan before she passed away. She taught me a couple of weaving techniques of the Cordilleras. The clothes became part of the ‘Ugnayan’ suite.” In “Vinta,” inspired by the Badjaos of Sulu, he wanted to capture the movements of the colorful sails within the garments, which are a patchwork/collage of different materials. The underwater coral formations of the Philippine seas inspired “Korales.” “I don’t have any one dominant material. The ‘Una’ pieces were the most difficult to make. They’re made of acrylic, car paint and polyurethane. That was very, very challenging. They’re my fashion-forward, futuristic modern adaptations of ternos,” Rajo said. The show was an essay on “What is Philippine Style?” and Rajo traveled to the major points of the archipelago to find the answers in clothing form. He did postmodern interpretations of the pañuelo for “Traje.” “I was inspired by the graphic stripes which were fashionable in the 1900s, and I want to bring back this motif for the .” “Saranggola” was an ode to kites he made as a kid, made of digitally woven silk brocade. “Taal” was a tribute to his native Batangas, he incorporated embroidery to mimic the seismic movements of the Taal Lake and the Taal Volcano. The finale piece was called “Sabong,” a dress festooned with feathers. “My from my mom’s side, from Dumaguete, was a ,” revealed Rajo, who honed his craft apprenticing for Louie Mamengo, Pepito Albert and Isaac Mizrahi. The closest concession he did to a retrospective was revisiting his “Pintados” dresses. “But this time I used the [Philippine ancient alphabet] and as a sort of reference. The dresses are laser cut felt on tulle, celebrating the handwork and skills of artisans,” Rajo said. The Professional Models Association of the Philippines produced a gala for a then-upstart Rajo in the mid-1990s but he didn’t “resurrect” them for this gala. However, as he jokingly noted his status, the daughters of these models walked for him this time, like Tweetie de Leon’s Sabina and Desiree Verdadero’s Aya.  “The most challenging for me [in doing the collection] was figuring out what techniques are new, fresh and innovative, at the same time wearable and pushing the envelope. You know when you design, it’s always a tug of war: a You have to also talk to your clients because this is essentially for them. This almost like an opus where I try to flex some design muscle,” said the New York Fashion Institute of Technology and Central Saint Martin’s graduate. The collection was indulgent and could have benefited from self-editing. As Cristobal Balenciaga once decreed: “Elegance is elimination.” But Rajo, the astute businessman, understands the bottom line. “I still think of my clients. What they’ll be needing, what they’ll be wearing. But because this is more of a couture show, it’s not like a ready-to-wear perspective, but the collection is still [grounded] in reality. When I design, I don’t want [the clothes] to be like just museum pieces. I want them to be worn, not admired hanging in a closet. I want my clients to enjoy wearing my designs. I thought about the women I’ve been dressing up in the last 25 years and how I can still address their needs,” he explained. Rajo is the only Filipino designer with a viable fashion house, the House of Laurel. Designing while running a business can be tough, as evidenced by the mental breakdowns of his foreign peers. How does he manage? “I delegate. I also have my family helping me. Betty is an early inspiration. Sister Gela headed the MAC makeup team for the show. I’m not alone. It just so happens that they help me in my vision and support me. We work together,” a grateful Rajo shared, hand over his bursting heart. “ The show is all fun but there is a strong marketing aspect to this. After 25 years, you have to revive yourself. It’s cathartic. You have to reinvent and know how to still be relevant.”