Gemstones, jewels and metals have always been Wynn Wynn Ong’s medium in crafting her intricate jewelry pieces and ornate home furnishings. But for her presentation in the 2016 Metrowear Icon, where she was named an Icon, she showcased a 24-piece couture collection made of fabric, and marked with feminism and fiction.
Ong joins the ranks of notable designers that include Francis Libiran, Rajo Laurel, Cary Santiago, and Randy Ortiz. She is the first non-garments designer to be honored as a Metrowear Icon—a sweet bonus as she also celebrated her 15th year in the industry last year.
Her journey as a designer and an Icon was told in a three-part show, showcasing her as a mentor to young design students, as a collaborator to some of the most renowned designers in the country, and as an artist who hones her craft and ventures on a different territory.
In her 10 years as an educator, Ong has always encouraged her students to collaborate instead of compete with each other. Hence, the first part of the show, which displayed garments created by her students at SoFa Design Institute (Abi Mercado and Alexine Castillo), De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde (Aminah Adriano and Paulo Arucan) and University of the Philippines College of Home Economics (Kyra Buenviaje and Alyssa Tan), showcased a kind of artistry only achieved through mutual respect and collaboration.
The six aspiring designers made pieces inspired by Ong’s accessories.
The second portion told the story of Ong as a friend to celebrated fashion designers Ivarluski Aseron, Mark Higgins, Jojie Lloren, Joey Samson, Chito Vijandre, and Santiago—all of whom she said she also admire.
“I won’t even call them my peers because I’m only a beginner. Hopefully they also get something out of the interaction,” said Ong.
Ong served as the inspiration for the creations the six seasoned designers presented. Fringe details were apparent in Aseron’s clothes, while Higgins’s designs featured sleek and clean lines. Lloren showcased wearable pieces in the shade of black, textures took centerstage in Samson’s barong-inspired creations, colors and details were replete in Vijandre’s set, and elegant pieces by Santiago closed the portion.
Finally, the main show presented where Ong is now in her life and in her craft. In her first foray into fashion design, she collaborated with Savile Row-trained Milka Quinn to bring to the runway a collection of clothes and jewelry.
Expectedly, Ong had many thoughts before she embarked on designing her first evening wear collection.
“Clothing design is not something I have done, so at first I told myself that I have to be very realistic. The second thought was how I can make sure I do it well. And the next challenge was I didn’t want to just design clothes, I didn’t want to just design a separate collection of jewelry,”
She said every thing must work together. “I didn’t want to just put a necklace on a gown or a bracelet on a dress.”
With the help of Quinn’s expertise, Ong’s visions were translated into pieces that featured rich tones and wide array of fabric textures. The matriarchal-inspired fantasy narrative of Ong’s 24-piece collection displayed painstakingly applied beading, tailoring and pattern play.
The jewelry and clothes complemented each other, just like how Ong envisioned them to be.
“Each of the piece tells its own story, and each of them is a chapter of a larger story,” she shared.
Photos by Sonny Espiritu