Titania Veda

Oscar Lawalata (Photo: Titania Veda)

Making His Mark Globally

Internationally acclaimed designer Oscar Lawalata blends Western influences with Indonesian motifs and traditional textiles. (Photo: Titania Veda, JG)

"I knew I was a designer because I can create innovative designs and I believe a designer has to be able to do that,” says Oscar Lawalata.

Wearing one of his own creations, a kimono-style navy jacket and black capris, his fawn-like legs crossed elegantly at the ankles and long fingers daintily placed on his lap, the noted Indonesian designer is as refined as the gray walls around him. Sitting in his strikingly spartan South Jakarta boutique, livened only by the racks holding vivid woven jackets, tops and sarongs, Lawalata is still basking in the glory of garnering the prestigious British Council’s International Young Fashion Entrepreneur 2009 award in London in February.

The judges commended Lawalata for his project, “Weaving the Future,” praising his “striking level of aesthetic and impressive understanding of local context and the inherent value of heritage.” The 32-year-old designer, as renowned for his lustrous long hair and luminous skin as he is for his development and promotion of traditional fabrics, talked of the path that led him to London and international recognition.

“I see the IYFE award as the first step,” he said. “London is a place that’s hard to break into. I don’t think of myself as the winner but of how I can develop this and contribute to the international market,” he added, referring to the financial prize he received to spend on a collaborative project between Indonesia and the UK for London Fashion Week.

With his three fashion lines, Oscar Lawalata Culture, Oscar Lawalata Couture and Oscar Lawalata for Uniforms, the designer caters to the various needs of the Indonesian market. His Culture line leans toward the traditional, while wedding gowns and cocktail dresses fall under the more lavish Couture line. Through his many years in the fashion business, Lawalata understands the important role of corporations and created his uniform line to meet the needs of Merpati airlines and hotels including Hotel Indonesia Kempinski, JW Marriot and Ritz Carlton.

Lining the racks of his boutique are many-hued clothes from his Culture line, such as silk kebaya and traditional South Sulawesi bodo tops.

He classifies himself as contemporary traditional because his basic foundation incorporates traditional costumes and textiles and develops them into fashion items that become more wearable, thus ensuring the longevity of the fabrics and their local heritage. “A tad conservative with a hint of the deconstructive,” he said of his design philosophy.

During his studies at Esmod fashion school in the ’90s, Lawalata said his fascination with the golden era of European fashion led him to wonder what Indonesia’s own golden age was like.

It is his belief that each country has a strong culture in its own right, including Indonesia, a nation where influences from all corners of the globe have been assimilated to give birth to a rich and diverse culture. “But I think that’s what isn’t seen,” he said. “People are too riveted by Europe and how to become like Europe.”

The strength of the West, Lawalata said, lies in its technology, management, conviction, vision and mission. The East holds the cultural identity of Indonesians. A blend of both is the perfect compromise to develop new fashion, according to the young designer, whose Western influences are evident in his exploration of patterns, cutting and sophistication of a particular concept.

“I’m not closing myself off from Western fashion,” Lawalata said, “but I feel, as an Indonesian, I was left with an inheritance, with the treasure that is the skill of the weavers, their techniques and the diversity of our motifs and culture.”

A steadfast advocate of traditional textiles, Lawalata continually strives to bring them to the international fashion market. But like many designers working with local fabrics, there are hurdles to overcome, one of which is the access to information on the textiles themselves.

“It is because local textiles weren’t developed with a clear structure but more based on the survival of the artisans themselves. And these artists are based in their own areas with no one trying to understand what they’re doing and developing these textiles further. In the end, the designers have to go out to the field.

“Government involvement is important to advance these cloths and to link them with education, and the education method. It is a long process if we want to make information easier to obtain. I would love to make a project where I can provide my knowledge to the younger generation,” Lawalata said.

“You can see how much we know about Indonesia and how Indonesian we are by what we wear. And that comes out of our own style. There are some people who still wear cloth with a kebaya, some mix them with blazers, with shawls or jeans or sportswear. There are lots of options. We can’t talk about right or wrong. Fashion has no rules. We speak from the heart.”

Behind his poised demeanor and charming smile, Lawalata believes in originality. “I feel this is where designers go wrong. They tend to follow the current. I make my own path,” he said.

“The public is unimaginative,” he added. “They tend to buy whatever is in front of them. But once they see something new, then they realize they want some variety.”

Variety for the younger generation of his fans may soon come in the form of a cost-friendly cotton line he plans to launch in the near future. As one of his goals is to reach out to the community, a project involving traditional cloth is also in the works. “For the future, we’re planning to see how we, Oscar Culture, can create a community in developing Indonesian culture with other communities, creating a synergy.”

What Lawalata brings to the table as a young designer is less his innovative design or his entrepreneurship, but his sense of duty as a designer.

“Responsibility,” he said, “is important because we’re not artists who just want to put out one show, but we should think of how these creations can be accepted by the public and become pioneers. That’s what’s important. The word ‘in’ for me means something that is still in vogue in 10 years’ time or in 20 years’ time. To do that we need to be responsible for bringing these clothes into the future.”

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