Dispelling The Dark

An exhibition featuring New Zealand designers Nom*D, Doris De Pont, World and Zambesi is on now at the National Gallery of Victoria in Melbourne. The exhibition, entitled, Together Alone: Australian and New Zealand Fashion, highlights the practices of eight leading New Zealand and Australian fashion houses. The diverse approaches to fashion represented through these fashion houses at once dispels the stereotyped references to the ‘casual and carefree’ nature of Australian fashions and the ‘dark and gothic’ label frequently attached to New Zealand design. With over forty works on display, the exhibition spans the period when independent fashion design from New Zealand and Australia moved beyond regional boundaries, influencing how fashion from the area has been perceived in the last decade. Together Alone runs through April 18.