Naju City Hosts 'Natural Dye Fashion Show' at Yeongsangang Riverside Sports Park

Published 24 Oct.2023 14:36(KST)

The natural dye fashion show held on the main stage of the ‘2023 Naju Festival, Yeongsangang River is Alive’ integrated festival was a stage that clearly confirmed the possibility of popularizing Korean natural dyeing, which has been preserved in Naju.

Naju City announced on the 24th that it held the ‘Natural Dye Fashion Show’ on the runway of the main stage at Yeongsangang Riverside Sports Park at 6:30 PM the previous day.

Naju is home to the only Korean Natural Dye Museum in the country, and in the Naju area, natural dyeing and textile production have been actively carried out against the backdrop of the Yeongsangang River basin. The natural confluence of freshwater and seawater created a favorable environment for indigo cultivation, making it historically the optimal place for the development of natural dyeing.

Runway scene from the natural dye fashion show. [Photo by Naju City]

Since 2016, the city has established the Natural Dye Foundation and has been operating the Korean Natural Dye Museum, striving to inherit the tradition of natural dyeing, promote the dyeing industry, and popularize it.

For this integrated festival, a natural dye fashion show was planned in collaboration with a professional fashion show director.

The fashion show broke the stereotype that natural dye garments were enjoyed mainly by enthusiasts and older generations, proposing casual everyday fashion that the MZ generation and 2030 fashion people can embrace.

Although a natural dye fashion show was held at Geumseonggwan in Naju in 2008, it mainly focused on traditional costumes at that time, so it attracted little public interest.

However, this fashion show was evaluated as pioneering a new route for popularizing natural dyeing through garments that preserved traditional colors while being modern and practical.

In addition, not only the garments but also the splendid stage lighting and show music harmonized with the fashion show, capturing the audience’s attention as a unique art fashion performance.

The first part of the fashion show featured casual clothing targeting the MZ generation, and the second part showcased about 80 natural dye garments, including artwear works by natural dye artists from the Naju area, presented on the runway with lively walking by professional models.

In particular, a child model wearing custom-made clothes incorporating natural dyeing showed a charming walk and received applause from the audience, and Mayor Yoon Byung-tae of Naju made a surprise appearance on the finale stage among the models, adding fun to the event.

Mayor Yoon said, “Natural dye garments are well-being clothes that are good for atopic and dry skin and have excellent antibacterial effects,” adding, “Along with practicality, I hope that the garments showcased in this fashion show will serve as a catalyst for the popularization of natural dyeing, enjoyed not only by enthusiasts and older generations but also by younger generations.”