Peruvian designers debut at Vancouver Fashion Week

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      When Elfer Castro presents his spring/summer 2014 collection at Vancouver Fashion Week tonight (September 16), he will be the first Peruvian designer to do so. Castro is one of five fashion designers from the South American country selected to showcase their work at the week-long event running until Sunday (September 21) at the Chinese Cultural Centre (50 East Pender Street).

      Tapping up-and-coming Peruvian designers is part of VFW’s global initiative. The bi-annual event launched in 2001 remains one of the few fashion weeks that actively seek out international designers. This year, more than two dozen countries—including China, Singapore, the Philippines, Korea, Poland, Hungary, the U.K., Denmark, Columbia, and New Zealand—will be represented.

      While this is Castro’s first time at VFW, it isn’t the avant-garde womenswear designer’s first runway show. His work, which is made from all-natural fibres and handmade by local artisans in the mountain-range city of Cusco, has been showcased in his home country and in Paris, France.

      Noe Bernacelli also holds international experience. The young designer got his start in fashion studying at Milan’s Carlo Esciccoli Fashion Institute of Design at the age of 18, followed by an internship at fashion house Gianfranco Ferre. Now based in Peru, Bernacelli’s womenswear pieces, which will be presented Friday (September 20), are whimsical, romantic, and represent haute couture.

      Sisters Maria José and Ursula Bertello will be arriving in Vancouver to present El Clóset de mi Hermana’s latest collection in conjunction with Peru’s Warmi footwear on Thursday (September 19).

      Meanwhile, well-known fashion photographer Mario Testino’s niece Itala Testino will be making her mark in Vancouver on Friday (September 20). The French Institute of Art & Fashion graduate recently presented her collection at Miami Fashion Week.

      For details and tickets, visit the Vancouver Fashion Week website

      You can follow Michelle da Silva on Twitter at twitter.com/michdas.

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