How Important is Lighting in Fashion Shows?
Last week, I had the opportunity to attend the Whisper of the Society fashion show by fashion design and marketing students from Raffles College of Higher Education. And all I can say is it isn’t just a fashion show; it’s a fashion movement. It demonstrates that sustainability isn’t merely about upcycling scrap fabrics into patchwork pants or remaking old denim pants into bags; it can also serve as a platform for artistic avant-garde pieces.
Clearly, the designers, though still students, put their effort into executing this show to the best of their ability. Sadly, we didn’t get to appreciate many of the garments’ details as much as I wanted to. Initially, upon receiving an invite from a friend at Raffles, I intended to review the fashion show to analyze the designers’ works. However, after the show, as I scrolled through my camera roll, I couldn’t really see the clothes at all. I thought maybe it was my phone, so I looked at the pictures from my friends using high-quality phones and sitting at the VIP section – still very poor photos (no offense to those who took them). The fashion show featured amazing pieces, but I couldn’t post any good pictures for you all to see because the venue was a retro club and no additional lights were provided. I could write an article about how good the pieces were and how creative the show was, if only I have the images to back reference from.
I want to address a main point – if you’re showcasing art, put it in a museum.
No hate to the organization that ran the show; they were all students and did their very best on this project. I’m just a mere writer discussing an issue that disrupts the creation of effective fashion shows. Did you know Runway Lighting is a big industry? Yeah, I didn’t know that too until I searched “fashion show lights” last week. Apparently, big fashion businesses invest so much in good lighting that there are businesses specializing in providing lighting for fashion shows. This demonstrates how professionals value lighting when showcasing their garments on the runway. This is because lighting doesn’t only serve illumination so people can see your design, but it also serves as the make or break for the runway setting.
1. Garments are displayed as they are meant to be displayed.
Different lighting can create different tone changes. Are the bright neon clothes seen under the very dim lights? Sure. What about the plain black ones with amazing layering and structure? Probably not. This can detract from your piece, not showcasing your work to its fullest potential. The audience wants to see the trench coat that you spent weeks sketching and sewing. Don’t let your hard work go to waste.
2. Photographers need good lighting.
Nowadays, media is EVERYWHERE. And if we’re going to be looking at it in the most realistic way, that’s what a fashion show is about, right? Media coverage. Nothing more, nothing less. It’s for the show. It’s for you to tell your story. And in order for photographers to take pictures, influencers to post on their stories, and the audience to tell their friends, you should invest more of your budget into lighting. If not, then what is it for?
3. It sets the atmosphere of your show.
The first few minutes of watching Whispers of the Society, I thought it was going to be a dark and mysterious show, something similar to Rodarte’s Fall/Winter fashion show. But it wasn’t. It was the individual works of different designers who worked hard to tell their own story through their work. It wasn’t about one single straightforward story at all, and it is clearly shown in their works, if only we were able to see them properly during the show.
The best example of this is Marc Jacob’s NYFW 2019 show.
Muted background and luminance lighting.
Of course, we should not expect this at every fashion show, especially budgeted ones. But it’s a clear idea of how important lighting is for us to appreciate the pieces on the runway. It’s such a shame that I couldn’t look back at the garments from the show because I personally enjoyed it. If only the organizers knew this would be an issue due to the venue and fixed it, then I would be sitting here writing about how much I enjoyed the show and how beautiful it was and how talented the designers are instead.
Nevertheless, I can’t to see how much the fashion scene in Singapore will continue to rise with these talented students.
