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Brazil Fashion Week Kicks Off!
By Armand Limnander
Jul 17, 2002/ FWD/ --- Sao Paulo fashion week was officially inaugurated with a party
to celebrate what could've been mistaken for the second coming of the Messiah -- in the form
of a tanner-than-tan, flip-flop-toting Gisele Bundchen.
The Brazilian model, something of a goddess in her homeland, fluttered about to promote
a new line of plastic sandals she designed for Grendene, a local brand.
"I never went to fashion school," she said when queried about her designer credentials.
"But I do own around 400 pairs of shoes."
The shows got started with a variety of poppy prints and acid colors.
Ronaldo Fraga presented an extensive array of gently draped, girly dresses in sherbet colors,
many of them stamped with prison tattoos and naïve lambs borrowed from traditional Catholic
iconography.
Jum Nakao followed with flocks of bright birds that alighted on neon smocks and breezy tops.
At the end of the day, Gisele created another commotion with her one and only runway
appearance of the week, in a flamenco-inspired floral maillot and ruffled micro-wrap,
by swimwear label Cia Maritima.
Meanwhile, Alexandre Herchcovitch, who shuttles back and forth between Sao Paulo and Paris,
showed a cool menswear line of moody urban basics that included jeans with zippers running
down the back, skull-print blazers, and sleeveless sweatshirts accessorized with dangling
suspenders reminiscent of "A Clockwork Orange."
While most Brazilian designers make a point of referencing their country's laidback,
no-worries culture, Herchcovitch seems determined to prove that there's also plenty
of hard urban grit here.
Cia Maritima
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