What started as a spin-off from Urog Etnika, a Mindanao Fashion Showcase, is now Kadayawan sa Dabaw’s major annual fashion event. This is the MODA MINDANOW, an event I swear never to miss every year.
Moda MindaNOW is an annual Fashion Designing Competition staged as part of Kadayawan Festival that provides a platform for local fashion designers and accessory artists from different regions in Mindanao to showcase their skills and creativity as they create fashionable garments highlighting the fabric, colors and patterns of Mindanao culture.
It is a glamorous event that pays tribute to Mindanao’s rich and colorful culture and heritage. Through the years, Moda MindaNOW has become a perfect affair to showcase the best of Mindanao-inspired fashion creations. In fact, it has evolved and gone far from promoting the region’s indigenous materials to showcasing Mindanao’s different hand woven textiles and fabrics.
Now on its 10th year, Moda MindaNOW continues to showcase the ingenuity, creativity and artistry of Mindanao-based fashion designers utilizing locally woven fabrics, fibers and accessories of the different tribes found in Mindanao.
This year’s staging and production of Moda Mindanao is in partnership with SM City Davao along with the Fashion Institute of Design and Arts (FIDA), the only institute in the city that offers focused fashion education. With FIDA on board, competing designers are challenged to raise the bar and create globally competitive designs. Designs that can be worn around the world – mainstream fashion yet still authentic in its design elements.
There are three categories where different designers are competing:
Pret-a-Porter, Couture and Innovative Design.
PRET-A-PORTER
Ready to wear fashion creation where designs and patterns are inspired by the different tribes of Mindanao.
COUTURE DESIGN CATEGORY
High fashion formal wear that shows the creativity of the designer through exquisite embellishment techniques and mastery of dressmaking.
INNOVATIVE FASHION CATEGORY
Ingenious creation that show the resourcefulness of the designer. This category encourages the contestant to experiment and incorporate non-fabric materials to interpret their designs.
This year’s Moda MindaNOW also features the works and creations of last year’s grand winner Fashion Designer JARED CERVANO whose collections are inspired by the B’laan Tribe.
And on this 10th edition of Moda MindaNOW, all the three categories – Pret-a-Porter, Couture and Innovative Design, are all won by the three young designers from Koronadal City, South Cotabato.
Personally, being there watching the grand stage of Moda MindaNOW for another year is another great opportunity for me to see and be mesmerized by such extraordinary creations that depict the rich culture of my own identity as a Mindanaoan.
Moda MindaNOW, a fashion showcase of what is truly “made in Mindanao”.