Australian fashion designer Wayne Cooper has been very much in the spotlight this week. I started writing this profile previously to this and as this is a fashion blog, I've decided to post this profile as planned. This is a profile of a designer; I have no interest in the other matters, nor do I intend to voice any opinion on them here.Wayne Cooper is one of Australia's foremost fashion designers and his recent presentation at the Rosemont Australian Fashion Week (May 2008) marked his tenth year at the fashion week shows. While he has firmly established himself in the Australian fashion community, Cooper is in fact from London, and started out on quite a different track before his move into the world of fashion. While having a strong sense for design, Wayne Cooper studied law before deciding that his true calling lay in the world of fashion design.
Deciding to take a leap of faith, Wayne Cooper left the UK to follow his desire to work in fashion and arrived in Australia in 1985. Here he took a job at Sydney fashion store Masons and undertook training in fashion at the East Sydney Technical College. After a seven year business partnership and period of 'learning the ropes' in the fashion industry Cooper decided to strike out on his own by starting the Brave fashion label. Together with stylist and creative director Jean Ferraud, the Brave label was developed alongside the exclusive Wayne Cooper label started shortly after in 1996. Hallmark features of the collection were established early on, with the designer and creative director spending time in Paris, London and New York, ensuring that the finest of fabrics and textiles were chosen for the 'Wayne Cooper' label.
In 2002 the designer took the bold step to implement a sexy, youthful range to replace the Brave label. A cheeky and irreverent label - Wayne - was launched. This saw the shift from the more romantic influence of Brave to a funkier, rock-n-roll styled label that gained massive appeal with models, actresses and bright young things everywhere. A rapid ascendancy in the Australian fashion ranks saw Cooper become a regular fixture at the annual Melbourne Cup, giving live coverage from the event with his irreverent humour and witty commentary being a hit. Following on this success he participated as a co-host on the Australian series of 'What Not To Wear'. Not afraid to tell the stylishly challenged exactly how it is, the success of Cooper was cemented in his role changing women from femme fatals to femme fatales.
Wayne Cooper is today recognised as one of the foremost designers in Australia fashion, and through the careful mixture of luxurious fabrics, lavish design and the innovate and technology savvy fashion shows this designer has firmly established his own niche in the industry. Particuarly celebrated are the unique shows staged during Australian fashion week. These are the one event that most express the unique influences and intrigues of Cooper as a designer. Over the past 10 years Cooper has staged some of the greatest must see events of Fashion Week. The key to these events is the lavish styling and dramatic production, combining unique locations with cutting edge technology and sensational soundtracks. Cooper's muses include Talitha Getty, Faye Dunaway and Michelle Pfeiffer, and international models including Sarah O'Hare, Amber Valetta, Eva Herzigova and Linda Evangelista have participated in Coopers shows.
This year's collection was no exception and the 2008 Ultraviolet collection was a much anticipated event bringing together a beautifully staged show with lavish designs and superbly made, luxurious clothes. Wayne Cooper has in the course of his career in Australia established a much loved clothing label and established himself as one of the leading designers in the country, bringing a unique flair to Australian fashion.
2008 Ultraviolet Collection photos from WayneCooper.com.au
