Miami Fashion Week of the Americas 2004

July 15, 2004 7:33 PM
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I must first start by explaining the basic setup of Miami’s own Fashion Week of the Americas from an editor’s point of view. The formula is very simple; one part fashion shows and exhibits, two parts media coverage, a large amount of haute talent from / South America-India-The Caribbean, and finally lavish after-parties at local chic venues.

Now on with the show!

This year’s fashion week, organized and presented by Sobol Fashion Productions, was held at the elegant Roney Palace situated at 2399 Collins Avenue, in the heart of upper east South Beach.

The event itself ran for a total of five days continuing through the weekend. The official VIP kick-off party was held at Nikki Beach Club, One Ocean Drive lower east South Beach, along with Nikki Style Magazine. This marked the beginning of what was a never-ending buzz of fashion, events, networking, media frenzy and of course the hottest people in Miami.

The Fashion Week event offered not only an insider’s look at the latest designs from around the globe, but also important Trend & Color seminars presented by mega industry giants such as Cotton Inc. NY, and The Mix Global Color Research Ltd. London.

Also ongoing with the fashion shows were the jewelry and accessories exhibitions situated at the entrance to the showroom. Ana Esther Soued, Caona, Brazilian Boutique and Rocio Heuser were the labels and companies chosen to display their pieces for Fashion Week 2004.

Other presentations available at Fashion Week were the art and furniture displays located at the upper lobby entrance to the Roney. The art gallery was presented by Romero Britto featuring a collection of his infamous work, which can also be found at the Lincoln Road Britto Gallery. McKinley Pierre was the talent behind the artistic furniture display and exhibit also located nearby the entrance to Fashion Week showroom.

A new piece to the list of events was the addition of this years annual fashion talent shows from local high school Design and Architecture Senior High students as well as the A.I. Miami International University of Art & Design students. The two student events were incorporated into the designers agenda shows for the week. Please check our coverage of the Dash student design show found in the Miami fashion section as well.

The main attraction was of course the collection of shows that were to be held daily and on a tight schedule. But of course, as fashion rule #1 states, all shows will run late, and they did, but it was to be expected.

The first day of designers included a lingerie and swim showcase from Carmen Belissa, Arianne Lingerie and Andre Foch with designs from Colombia, Canada and Brazil respectively. Marcelo Quadros from Brazil, which was chosen as FWA’s ‘New Star in Fashion’ was also included in the lineup.

A surprise showing by this Cooljunkie fashionista’s favorite Miami casual menswear designers, Dulce De Leche was a welcome addition to the evenings' events. Dulce cat walked their 2004-05 men’s line as a finale to the evening with rave reviews.

Day two was a collection of prêt-a-porter (ready-to-wear) designers including Sonia Chang, Teresa Valencia, Claudia Bertolero, Pineda Covalin, Alquimia and the lovely jersey textile artisans Espen International. Following was the Panama showcase with designers Melina Typaldos, Mara Durufour and Federico Visuetti showing their countries best in fashion.

The final showcase for the evening was a collection of Indian designers whom always steal the audience attention with the use of intricately embellished silks combined with rich color and heavy texture. Designers present were Rina Dhaka, Anjana Bhargava, Sabyasachi Mukherjee and Payal Singhal.

Day three was started with a wonderful showcase of Miami/Peru native Julian Chang’s latest collection. Chang was chosen for his unique talent in the women’s couture area and as a treat was launching his newest endeavor, the Chang new men’s collection.

The International Style showcase followed with collections featuring Anna Bosch, Robert Pietri, Michelle Cole and Heather Jones. Cole and Jones accessories were provided by Twinestones, a local Miami jewelry label specializing in semi-precious stones and all hand made unique pieces.

The Argentine designers, Toscana and Marcelo Senra wrapped up the evening along with an exhausting just to watch Tango performance by Tangosonica of Buenos Aires. Ole.

The final and fourth day included the Couture showcases featuring Norka Peraltu, Sonia Chang, Fatima Arrieta, Diego Morales, Mercedes Marquez and Rosita Hurtado. The last showcase was for the “FWA’s 2004 Designer of the Year” award recipient, Enrico Coveri.

House of Coveri showed with its beautiful silk, flowing gowns and brightly accented pieces coordinated with fabulous bangles, cuffs and sunglasses provided by LA and Boca Raton based companies Freelook/Impex Trading and Vecellio Occhiali. The signature kisses and lips motif was highly accented throughout the catwalk with patterns found on garments, shoes and handbags in the collection.

This commemorative award will also salute Enrico Coveri whom launched his first collection in 1977 with his signature color use throughout his designs earning him the title of “enfant prodige” in Italian fashion. Silvana Coveri, sister of Enrico, has been the director of the House since the premature death of her brother.

Francesco Martini Coveri, nephew to Enrico made his first showing in 1996 and in 2001 became the company’s Artistic and Creative director following in his uncle’s footsteps. Today, the house of Coveri is highly thought of as one of Italy’s best, will be acknowledged with the FWA 2004 Designer of the Year Award.

Fashion Weeks finale included a last showing of the finalist for the FWA Moda & Music Award, as it is a fully judged fashion competition after all. And the winner for the 2004 FWA Moda Award is? Julian Chang for Julian Chang prêt-a-porter! A crowd and local favorite took home the coveted award for 2004.

The awards ceremony included performances by Shalim, Mora Godoy and Alicia Machado emceed by Gabriel Romero, Erick Elias and Candel Ferro. Presenters for the evening were Romero Britto, Victoria Puid de Lange and Milka Duno the first woman t o win Miami’s racing epic The Grand Prix (love her).

Terra.com introduced its new model of the year and Fashion Week of the America’s closed its 2004 ceremonies with a wrap up party at State, 320 Lincoln Road, lower East South Beach.

After a week of fashion shows, trunk shows, presentations, exhibits and after parties, Miami will be left with its 2004 fashion king, Julian Chang to celebrate proudly. Hair and makeup credits go to the MAC international pro-team and Samy Salon Hair Artistry.

Thank you Fashion Week of the Americas organizer, Beth Sobol for a wonderful event of fashion and fancy and until next time.

For more information and coverage on FWA 2004, please go to www.miamifashionweek.com.