A spectacular celebration of fashion and camaraderie for
a cause is about to dazzle Manila once again as the Red Charity Gala, organized
by society icon Tessa Prieto-Valdes and philanthropist Kaye Tinga, is set to
happen on October 16 at the Makati Shangri-La.
The gathering aims to raise bigger funds for the
Philippine Red Cross and Assumption High School Batch 1981 Foundation. “It is
amazing how this vision that came to fruition several years ago is still
burning with flames. We are very happy to partner with creative and world-class
talents, feature their works, and give back to the community all at the same
time,” said Tessa.
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Highly acclaimed
London-based designer
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Lesley Mobo
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Known for featuring a league of world-renowned Filipino
designers, such as Rajo Laurel, Dennis Lustico, Furne One, Michael Cinco, Cary
Santiago, Ezra Santos, Jojie Lloren, the Red Charity Gala has indeed showcased
a variety of design philosophies—from edgy and futuristic, to swarovskis and
flowy cloths, to collection inspired by paintings and many more. And now, the spotlight
focuses on the works of highly acclaimed London-based designer Lesley Mobo.
This year, the Red Charity Gala runway is about to see
“an orgy of “Tudor Romance” towards the culmination of the ‘War of the Roses’
and Dynasty kitchy glamour via Studio 54,” according to the designer.
Lesley, who spent his early years in Aklan before moving
to England, is known for his mastery of designing and tailoring soft, feminine
dresses with edgy, structural touch. Graduating from the prestigious Central St
Martin’s in 2002 with a First Class B.A. Honours Degree in Fashion, Lesley also
received Colin Barnes Award for fashion illustration from Central St Martin’s,
a nomination in the Chartered Society of Designer Fashion Awards held in the
British Natural History Museum. His works also took center stage in the
‘Fashion in Motion’ exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum, from which
his masterpieces were featured in the BBC News.
In 2005 he designed a sell-out capsule collection called
Lesley Mobo by Diesel which was manufactured, distributed and sold by Diesel in
its major flagship stores in London, Milan, Paris, New York, Antwerp, Berlin
and Tokyo.
Four years after, he started wholesaling his MOBO womens
wear line in Paris during Paris Fashion Week, and was featured in Italian
Vogue. From 2012 – 2015, he consulted for both luxury and high street brands in
the UK and became the design consultant for Ghost, and just recently he
designed his top selling T-shirt line "MOBO Lesley Mobo" (Women, Men,
Girls, Kids and Babies) for the Japanese Brand Uniqlo selling in China, Hong
Kong, Macau, Korea, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines,
Thailand, Australia and U.S.A. making it one of the biggest line products in
Uniqlo Stores.
All these glorious victories and recognitions started
when Lesley’s metal outfit with pearls design won the CITEM competition. “I was
very young when I entered the competition, in fact the youngest and I had no
proper training or experience then. I was competing with the country’s great
and established designers like Gerry Katigbak and Jojie Lloren.”
However, it wasn’t an easy start for Lesley before making
it to the next stage: “I was selected to represent Philippines for Japan and
Paris but was not able to get a visa to Japan in time." At that time, he
was also affected by opinions of other people who did not agree with his
fashion ideas. "That was a traumatic period in my life," he shares,
adding that it was at that point when he thought of abandoning fashion.
But there was a ray of light. "Inno Sotto encouraged
me to go ahead with my plan to study fashion so I focused myself on building my
portfolio and forwarded it to Central Saint Martins. After a few months, I got accepted to do the main BA Hons course
in Fashion Womenswear and was exempted the one year Foundation Course.”
There, Lesley mastered his draping skills. While the
immaculate combination of vintage and new materials has been his trademark in
designing soft feminine pieces, Lesley’s style also reflects a fun, street
vibe. “The identity is always a combination of timeless classic silhouette with
a bit of a twist and humour. It has a modern attitude towards power dressing,”
he said.
With his signature techniques and touches, the Red
Charity Gala is indeed ready to surprise the fashion scene with never before
seen pieces from a local talent. “This year, we promise to defy the
expectations. With an amazing, renowned talent like Lesley Mobo, more
supporters and higher targets, we are very much sanguine about the turnaround
of the Red Charity Gala 2015, and we hope many people can join us in this
vision, too!” said Kaye.
The Red Charity Gala is directed by Ariel Lozada, with
fashion styling by Noel Manapat, and hair and makeup by Henri Calayag. The show
is presented by Bench and is supported by Balesin Island Club, Piaget, SunLife,
Megaworld, Olay, Downy, Inquirer Red, Lifestyle Asia and the Makati Shangri-La.
Special thanks to Abitare Internazionale, Blow Dry Bar, Coca-Cola,
FuentesManila, Marie France, Philippine Daily Inquirer, Philippine Star, Remy
Martin, Robert Blancaflor Group, Singapore Airlines, Volvo, and W/17.
For inquiries and reservations, contact Maggie Gineta at
(+63) 917-8325570 or visit www. redcharitygala.com.
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