Dances and Ceremonies: Spring and Summer 2017

Be swept up in a colourful whirl of Mexican clothes and culture with fashion designer and cultural historian Carla Fernández’s latest collection, Dances And Ceremonies: Spring/Summer 2017.

Fernández documents, preserves and brings contemporary relevance to the rich textile heritage of Mexico’s indigenous communities. She studies pre-Hispanic and traditional Mexican clothing design that employs an elaborate system of pleats, folds and seams, using only combinations of squares and rectangles. Working closely with Mexico's indigenous communities, she has created stunning, ethical contemporary designs. In the process, she has revived indigenous textile-making in Mexico and improved the economic conditions of the artisans and communities making these textiles.

In dances and ceremonies, Fernández puts together the craft and ideas of 11 different indigenous and Mestizo* tribes around Mexico. She explores the numerous festivals in the Mexican calendar celebrated by neighbourhoods and communities, which are marked by unique religious rituals and beautifully thought-out costumes. Expect a completely immersive sensory experience of her country’s culture – native art is woven into the moving tapestry of the event through five carved totem sculptures. Instead of the usual catwalk, dancers and models perform a unique, specially-created choreography. You can appreciate the beauty of the handwork, the rustle of the skirts and the sheen of the light upon the fabric.

Mestizo are people of mixed European and indigenous Latin American ancestry.