Fiji showcase for Dunedin fashion designer

Congratulations to Dunedin designer Amber Bridgman, whose creations were showcased recently as part of Fiji Fashion Week.

Amber Bridgman (Ngai Tahu, Kati Mamoe, Waitaha, Rabuvai and aboriginal descent) has her own fashion and traditional Māori arts label Kahuwai, that explores identity and whakapapa through its unique Māori designs in Aotearoa NZ.

She also works as a contracting lecturer for the Bachelor of Design (Fashion) programme at Otago Polytechnic and has multimedia experience with a background in television and media.

She based her latest collection on the paua shell, handmaking jewellery using her traditional carving and weaving skills.

Amber’s 20-piece collection (which grew after reworking some pieces originally created for a London Pacific Fashion Week show) was featured in Fiji Fashion Week’s premiere event Resort Luxe, which showcased Pacific glamour, couture and evening wear from 24 designers.

She says the event was an amazing opportunity and a rewarding and supportive experience that was worth the cost and effort to get there.

It was also the first time in more than three years that Amber had launched a collection of new work to an international audience.

Amber is a proudly Dunedin wahine who has been successfully producing garments here in her tribal area for 20 years.

She holds various awards and titles for design and innovation and her work has also been featured in magazines, television shows and on international platforms, catwalks and museums.

Her Kahuwai brand reflects her unique style and is heavily influenced by her surroundings, whanau (family), and whakapapa (genealogy). Kāi Tahutaka (Kai Tahu tribal practices) is what she lives and breathes, and is what underpins her work practices and designs.

Rebecca Fox from the Otago Daily Times caught up with Amber at Otago Polytechnic for a feature piece on her road to Fiji Fashion Week.

* Read here > [ODT Subscriber story]