Young contemporary artist and experimental fashion designer Kelvin Morales explores the interconnections of humanity with the future environmental dystopia in his thought-provoking debut collection in Tokyo.
Inspired by the genetic deformities caused by toxic chemical exposure, Morales, who is known for his fascination with peculiar concepts and exploratory design processes, translated the threats of current environmental issues into futuristic tailoring and semi-rugged ensembles.
Dubbed as “Hazard Blue,” the 45-piece series features modern barong Tagalog, denim jackets, hand-dyed jeans and pleated water-repellent tops and pants with handmade patchworks, prints and his signature embroidery to symbolize and depict the murky waters, and floating plastic bags and crushed bottles.
Morales, who trained at the Fashion Design and Merchandising Program of De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde, used the endless possibilities of fabric manipulation and took advantage of old and new technologies such as tie-dye and digital printing.
Morales is one of eight homegrown Filipino labels in the #PHxTokyo showroom incubation program of the Center for International Trade Expositions and Missions.
Together with the other designers, he underwent group and one-on-one mentorship sessions with fashion consultant Tetta Ortiz-Matera and Japan-based showroom H3O Fashion Bureau’s Jason Lee Coates and Hirohito Suzuki.
