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Indigenous Designers To Make Australian Fashion Week Debut

The Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair Foundation will showcase five Indigenous designers at MBFWA 2020.

As New York and London Fashion Weeks continue to dazzle the gaze of global style watchers, Australia has made its first designer line-up announcement ahead of Mercedes Benz Fashion Week Australia (MBFWA).

This year the Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair Foundation (DAAFF) will make its MBFWA debut, presenting The Australian Indigenous Fashion Showcase on Friday May 15.

Both Indigenous and non-Indigenous models will wear the creations designed by five Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander designers, while Indigenous stylists and other creatives will be involved in managing and producing the show.

ā€œThis runway event will bring together collections from five of Australiaā€™s leading First Nations designers and is a unique opportunity for the Australian and international fashion community to connect to the worldā€™s oldest living culture,ā€ said David Giles-Kaye, Indigenous Fashion Projects DAAFF in a statement to HuffPost Australia.

Darwin Aboriginal Art Fair Foundation announced on Thursday that expressions of interest for designers and fashion industry professionals will open on Wednesday February 26.

Other shows to feature at MBFWA in 2020 will showcase Resort 2021 collections from returning designers Aje, Anna Quan, Bec + Bridge, Bondi Born and Ten Pieces.

Designers alice McCALL, Aqua Blu, bassike, Ixiah, Lillian Khallouf, Ginger & Smart, Mariam Seddiq, Matteau, Steven Khalil, Tigerlily and We Are Kindred will be part of the MBFWA: The Experience, which offers consumers a select number of tickets to attend shows.

Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Australia will take place from May 11 to 15 at Carriageworks in Sydney.

From Country to Couture, Julie Shaw, MAARA Collective x Bula'bula Aboriginal Arts Corporation, MAARA Collection.
Dylan Buckee
From Country to Couture, Julie Shaw, MAARA Collective x Bula'bula Aboriginal Arts Corporation, MAARA Collection.
From Country to Couture, Verner x Lisa Waup, Journeys Collection.
Dylan Buckee
From Country to Couture, Verner x Lisa Waup, Journeys Collection.
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