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R U N WAY TRENDS: YEARS IN THE MAKING AS MODELS STRUTTED DOWN THE INUVIK RUNWAY IN JULY, adorned in sealskin, polar bear, layers of fringe and iridescent beads, it became clear the Arctic Fashion Show spoke to what tradition can bring to the table today.
Arctic Fashion Show has been part of Inuvik’s Great Northern Arts Festival for about 30 years, but its first-time organizers Erica Lugt and Lesley Villeneuve were prepared to give the show a new look, while still holding its roots in the past. This year’s theme for the Great Northern Arts Festival was especially fitting: Clothed in Culture. “I’m still smiling after last night’s show,” said Lugt the day after the July show. “It went really well and better than we expected. I felt it brought the vision that we wanted to life and had a lot of really good responses.”
INUVIALUIT DESIGNERS MAKE THEIR HISTORY KNOWN THROUGH ART WORDS BY DANA BOWEN
Because of a strong desire to ignite passion in others for Inuvialuit fashion, Lugt decided that rather than bringing in historical outfits from the Yellowknife museum, as done previously, she would collect handmade pieces by those in the community. The event featured 39 looks, which Lugt said required her and Villeneuve to “raid family members’ closets” to find traditional pieces to showcase. She had at first asked designers in the community to contribute pieces for the show, but found many were reluctant to create outfits for art, rather than sale.
MODEL: SANDRA BLAKE COVER: HOLLY CAMPBELL MAKEUP: REBECCA BAXTER
