Zang Toi Presents Stunning White/Turquoise Hues In His "Greek Santorini" Spring Collection

By Manik Mehta NEW YORK, Sept 14 (Bernama) -- Malaysian fashion icon, Zang Toi, presented Friday night his stunning Spring 2016 collection as the New York Fashion Week kicked off with a growing number of designers from Asia trying to make, or having already made a mark, in one of the world's fashion capitals. Toi's runway shows are generally patronised and cheered by his growing fan base that includes celebrities from various fields such as the movies, arts and social life. Friday night's show was no exception, with actress Jackie Cruz, American Ballet Theatre's former prima ballerina Irina Dvorovenko and singer, author and actress Patti LaBelle and others making their appearance to cheer Toi who even as he was doing the final walk with one of his models ran in his white shirt and skirt to hug LaBelle. Toi's collection, as he said in a pre-show interview with Bernama, was inspired by his visit to Santorini Island in Greece. "The all-white architecture of the buildings and houses juxtaposed against the greenish-blue waters of the sea captured my imagination ... and I decided to use it for my Spring 2016 collection," he explained. The strong white overtones in his garments mingled with the turquoise coloured creations he presented at the show. The show's overarching theme was "The Spendour of Santorini". Before the actual catwalk by his models began, the audience was treated to soft music that ended with the sound of huge waves lashing the shore, creating the sea atmosphere around Santorini Island. There were stunning designs that followed, starting with a white couture cotton blazer worn with hand-beaded crystal necklace and white cotton high-waisted trousers by a female model sporting a big white hat. Another design was a white couture cotton sculpted blazer with cotton organdy sculpted collar and sleeve crystal brooch closure with white cotton trousers, and also teamed with a hat. Another interesting and offbeat design was a white Swiss cotton organdy and couture cotton Santorini mini-dress bordered with eyelet lace. However, it was not just exquisite designs but also intricate embroidery that embellished some of his items that caught the eye. Toi resorted to the use of vibrant Greek granny crochet patches on his handloomed cotton jackets, sculpted coats and dresses. There was a fine balance of an exotic flavour blended with the accepted norm of modernity. An ocean-blue handloomed wool and rayon high square-neck tunic was worn with Santorini ocean blue handloomed wool and rayon trousers. One of his impressive designs that produced those "oh-I-wish-I-had-it" looks on the faces of some of the women in the audience was a sweeping, floor-length gown. A male model strutted attired in an ocean blue couture silk shantung cut-away blazer with a white Swiss cotton pique tuxedo shirt and trousers. "The dominating white colour used in conjunction with other ocean colour shades such as green and blue are indeed a statement about Santorini," Toi said, adding there was an "element of neutrality" in the crystal colour that was blended into the designs. "We also have imported cotton from Italy with different shades...the designs have a broad universal appeal to different ethnic groups, including the Chinese, Malays, Indians, Americans, Europeans, etc," he noted. The Greece-inspired collection will head for the Tampa Art Museum in Tampa, Florida, for a show on Sept 19. Subsequently, Toi plans to participate with these designs at the Fashion Week Middle East to be held in Dubai in November. The New York Fashion Week is no longer the domain of traditional Caucasian haute couture creators. Sixteen of the 72 officially designed New York Fashion Week shows are being presented either by Asian or Asian-American designers. The number of shows presented by Asians last year was 13. However, the advent of such newcomers of Asian ethnicity is not to be seen as a challenge for Toi who has already established a niche for himself in the haute couture world with his brand name. The 2016 Spring runway show also marked Toi's 26th year in the fashion business. In his comments, Toi has been applauding the proliferation of Asian designers in recent years, observing that such new arrivals would lead to more opportunities in diversifying fashion. "The world of fashion knows no boundaries when it comes to talent," he said. --BERNAMA