Aurora fashion week is all about diversity

The International Aurora Fashion Week Russia, or AFW, marks its 10th season this fall, and it has snapped up what is perhaps the town’s most glamorous fashion shopping center for its shows. Running from Oct. 9 through 18, the festival this year features a generous range of events, from fashion shows to film screenings to fine dining. Its headliners in the forthcoming event include the French street wear brand Maison Kitsune, the Russian designer Artem Shumov, the Ukrainian designer Lilia Litkovskaya, and the British brand ZDDZ established by Russian native Dasha Selyanova. Russia’s up-and-coming home talent will be presented by the emerging St. Petersburg brand Saint Tokyo, founded by the local designer Yulia Pitenina, who attempts to bridge fashion concepts of East and West in her collections.

AFW Russia is one of the leading projects of the Russian fashion industry. In the five years it has existed, AFW has grown impressively to become one of the most inspiring fashion events in the country. Its list of celebrity guests and participants has seen some of the biggest names in international fashion, such as Thom Browne, Costume National, David Koma, Mary Katrantzou and Mark Fast, in addition to an array of experts in both domestic and international fashion business and fashion culture.

Over its history, the fashion week has often changed venues. This time around, the organizers have chosen the DLT fashion store, the epitome of glamour and arguably the local answer to Paris’ Galleries Lafayette and London’s Harrods.

The city’s premiere fashion event will connect to the world of art through an exciting photography exhibition that will open on Oct. 16 at the Erarta Museum for Contemporary Art. Titled "Russia in Vogue," the extensive display features more than 100 glamorous shots — all aimed to reflect Russia’s role and place in the history of fashion - that have been published on the pages of Vogue magazine in various countries. The exhibition can be seen until Dec. 16.

Oct. 17 will see the screening of Bertrand Bonello’s critically acclaimed new film "Saint Laurent," which has just become France’s choice for the Academy Awards in the best foreign film category. The film follows the life of the legendary French fashion designer in the period from 1965 and 1976. The gastronomic element of AFW, which has been rapidly expanding over the past seasons, is quite extensive. The Aurora Plate gastronomic festival will be held from Oct. 10 through 19 in more than 20 restaurants in a culinary journey exploring different cooking traditions and cuisines.

On Oct. 11, AFW’s trademark event, White Night Shopping, will see dozens of local fashion shops and stores staging parties, offering discounts and launching new products.

Aurora’s enthusiastic diversification and expansion looks set to continue. "It is no longer enough to offer the audiences mere straight-forward fashion shows," said Artyom Balayev, the founder and the head of the AFW. "We are on the lookout for new ways of reaching out to audiences, communicating with them and creating a fresh new context for our events."En savoir plus:les robes de soirée 2013 | robe de soirée pas cher courte