Beauty of Wool in the Hand of Rahul Mishra

When hearing the word wool it gives out the impression that the said material is hot, sultry, and ancient. But once you perceive the collection of dresses, blazer, blouses to skirts made of wool draft by Rahul Mishra, winner of the International Woolmark Prize 2014, at the opening show of Jakarta Fashion Week 2016; simply the image of the common wool is forgotten. The collection is dominated by the color black and white that implies elegance. It falls effortlessly on the model, skirts, and dresses moved with posh for every step of the runway. Embroidered sweater of a house and windmill was seen beautifully floaty despite the base material being wool.
 
From the Village of Gurrundah, a wool producing village in Sydney, Australia, Rahul took the inspiration and the name of it to his collection; “The Village”. He realized how important the existence of the independent village; in the village they have a windmill for generating clean energy. They even process their own water supply. Other than mentioned the air there is also as fresh as it says, impressing Rahul yet more; sparrows fly freely through the sky. There is a similarity in all the villages in the world, which is struggling to maintain the balance of nature. There will always be a battle between modernism and traditional stand.

The wool used by Rahul was manufactured in Australia. However, the entire production process is done in India, because he wants to empower rural communities in India to be financially independent. A total of ten villages were thought to construct international quality garments. All made by hand, ranging from knitting, embroidery, and sewing. About a thousand of people are involved in the making of his work, which has travel across the globe to country such as Japan, China, Europe, Australia, USA, and Canada.
 
Rahul believe fashion is a universal language. Fashion is not restricted by the language and ethnicity. He wants to take India to the international market with him. "I had the idea of creating new jobs that help people in their own villages. I prefer confer them jobs, rather than contacting them to work for me. If the village was growing stronger, then the country will also get stronger, the nation will also follow," he said in a media gathering held on Sunday.

For Rahul, wool is very special. It is different from other materials such as silk and cotton, which is compromising animal welfare. In the manufacture of wool, no sheep were hurt during the process. Properties of wool is also very environmentally friendly and conserve the eco system. Through the International Woolmark Prize competition, the The Woolmark Company is trying to change the perception of many people who often looked down on wool; and in the hands of talented designers, like Rahul Mishra, wool can indeed appear elegant, graceful, as well as comfortable to wear in all weather.