Photos by Peter Pe
FOLLOWING the huge success of Ternocon 2018, the Cultural Center of the Philippines (CCP) in cooperation with local clothing line Bench/Suyen Corporation geared up once more to pursue its mission of preserving and promoting the Philippine national dress with Ternocon 2020 held last January 26 at CCP’s Tanghalang Nicanor Abelardo.
Ternocon 2020 saw guests in their Filipiniana best – elegant ternos for women and exquisite barongs for the men – as the well-attended event selected the winners of the terno-making contest from 14 finalists who are budding but very talented designers all.
“Terno-making should be ‘second nature’ for every designer, much like how designers from other countries know their national attire by heart, like the hanbok for Korea and the kimono for Japan,” CCP chair Margie Moran Floirendo said. “There are some things that should remain constant, like our terno. We just need to find a good balance between traditional and contemporary, preservation and reinvention, without sacrificing everything the terno encompasses and symbolizes.”
CCP and Bench aim to encourage the use of the terno as a popular form of formal dress and to inspire and motivate emerging designers to create ternos that are at par with the creations of senior designers.
Each finalist was required to design and execute a capsule collection of three ternos which can either be cocktail or evening terno.
Mentors for Ternocon 2020 were renowned Manila designer Inno Sotto (chief mentor), Cebu’s Philip Rodriguez, modernist designer Ivarluski Aseron, and London-based international designer Lesley Mobo with Gino Gonzales as project director.
The winners are: Hannah Adrias of Pasay City for her fatigue, utilitarian creations, first prize; Jaggy Glarino of General Santos City for his immaculate white ensembles, second prize; and Dinnes Obusan of Tinambac, Camarines Sur for his dramatic black entries, third prize.
The top three winners received cash prizes from Bench/Suyen Corporation.
The mentors, together with Ternocon 2018 first prize winner Marlon Tuazon of Pampanga, also showcased their special terno collections at the event.
