Melbourne Fashion Festival to include runway shows from First Nation Australian designers as well as shows from Indonesia, Philippines, Malaysia and Laos

A special showcase at this year’s Melbourne Fashion Festival will be focusing on designs by Indigenous individuals and groups with the ground-breaking Global Indigenous Runway set to demonstrate the future of Indigenous fashion.

This year’s theme, Ancestral Bloodlines and it will feature designers and models from four ASEAN member states: Indonesia, the Philippines, Malaysia and Laos, celebrating the connections between First Nations’ Culture and Peoples from Australia and the ASEAN region.

It will be the biggest show yet, featuring theatrical elements, cultural practices, and First Nation-themed music as eleven collections are showcased.

Says Tina Waru, Founder and CEO of the the Global Indigenous Runway Project, “I envisioned a platform where Indigenous youth could reclaim their narratives and showcase their talents on a global stage.”

Continues Waru: “Fashion [is] the bridge, connecting tradition with innovation, while fostering cultural pride and economic opportunities.”

Pieces in the runway collection will reflect designers’ deep connection to their lineage, conveying powerful stories passed down through generations, and will symbolise the strength and resilience of First Nations peoples and other global cultures and communities.

Delvene Cockatoo-Collins is one of the First Nations designers featured at this year’s Melbourne Fashion Festival.

Also, on Thursday 7 March is the First Nations Rising Designer Runway which will celebrate emerging First Nations fashion talent, selected by Festival collaborator, Mob in Fashion. Designer names include Delvene Cockatoo-Collins, Gali, House of Darwin, Lillardia Briggs-Houston, Miimi and Jiinda, Soild Ochre, Take Pride Movement and more.

Antonino Tati

Melbourne Fashion Festival’s Independent Programme 2024 takes place at the Melbourne Museum with the Ancestral Bloodlines show on Sunday 3 March, 2024. Tickets can be purchased at globalindigenousmanagement.com.