Around 650 buyers and press members, far more than the expected 250, gathered at the Lincoln Center in New York on Tuesday for the presentation of “Concept Korea III,” a Korean government-led fashion project.

Subtitled “Cultural Treasures 2011,” the show was held at the David Rubenstein Atrium in the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts during the city’s semi-annual Fashion Week from Feb. 10 to 17. The show aimed to expand global recognition of Korean fashion designers and create business opportunities for them.

The project was initiated last February, co-organized by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Daegu Metropolitan City Government, Korea Creative Content Agency and Korea Research Institute for Fashion Industry. Since then, three Korean fashion events, including the latest, have taken place during the New York Fashion Week. 

Curated by Valerie Steele, director of the Museum at the Fashion Institute for Technology, four established Korean brands showcased a total of 40 of their latest designs that commonly feature Korea’s traditional color of indigo blue, fitting the subtitle of the event.

Doho presented avant-garde and vintage styles which emphasized feminism and elaborate details; Steve J & Yoni P showcased trendy party-girl style looks accented with vivid colors and patterns; General Idea offered outdoor gear inspired by military uniforms and sportswear; and Lie Sang Bong Paris showed modern interpretations of Zen in his collection, using mostly black, grey and white.

High-profile fashion figures like Stephanie Winston Wolkoff, director of fashion at Lincoln Center, Fern Mallis, former vice president of IMG Fashion and founder of New York Fashion Week, and Steven Kolb, executive director of the Council of Fashion Designers of America attended the event, according to the Culture Ministry.

A brief tasting event of Korean dishes followed the show, as a part of the Culture Ministry’s efforts to globalize hansik. New York’s star chef Tom Colicchio cooked up some Korean snacks like pork bulgogi and vegetable rolls and kimchi dumplings.

“Concept Korea” collections will be displayed in a showroom at Chelsea Market in the Meatpacking District until next Wednesday. For more information, visit www.conceptkorea.org.

By Park Min-young  (claire@heraldcorp.com)