 |
View of the Wool Modern exhibition in London in 2011 (Wool Modern) |
A touring exhibition that promotes the use of wool opens in Seoul next week with a showcase of creative wool clothing and products by Korean designers.
The 2013 Wool Modern exhibition, part of The Campaign for Wool of the Woolmark Company and supported by the Prince of Wales, seeks to raise awareness of the versatility of wool, its aesthetic qualities and environmental benefits.
The exhibition started in England in 2011 and has been held in Germany, Australia and China.
The use of wool peaked with the emergence of iconic fashion items such as Chanel’s tweed jacket, Dior’s New Look, and an award-winning wool dress by Yves Saint Laurent. But its use has declined with the invention of synthetic fibers such as polyester and viscose in the last 15 years, which cuts production costs for clothes.
Recently, wool has begun to be recognized again as a natural, environmentally friendly fiber, being renewable, biodegradable, resilient and elastic. Its versatile qualities as a natural insulator are being rediscovered as well.
The wool campaign, which seeks the revival of wool in fashion, presents wool creations by top fashion designers in Korea.
The Seoul exhibition features clothes and home products made of wool. Six Korean fashion designers ― Moon Young Hee, KUHO, JUUN. J, Cy Choi, Eudon Choi and Wooyoungmi ― participated in the project with each presenting wool creations that take elements from their signature designs.
KUHO incorporates drapes and a multi-layered design in his navy wool outerwear; Juun. J presents his signature trench coat; Cy Choi also presents his trademark black coat; Moon Young Hee showcases a man’s coat accented with a mille-feuille-shaped decoration on the front and Eudon Choi introduces a scarlet red knitwear dress from his FW 2013 VARYKINO collection. Woo Young Mi presents a framed artwork made of wool felt.
Wool creations by the world’s top designers and design houses such as Lanvin, Paul Smith and John Galliano will also be on display.
The exhibition also showcases various wool products for the home such as furniture and dcor items.
The Wool Modern exhibition runs from Nov. 18 to 25 at Ara Art Center in Insa-dong, Seoul.
By Lee Woo-young (
wylee@heraldcorp.com)
