Franco Jooste

From the Resene Whitecliffe Colour of Fashion gallery

Colour: Resene Adrenalin

“When finding out my colour for the Resene project, I reflected on my past to establish a meaningful connection with my colour, I loved playing with the idea of a sunrise, but upon further exploration, I realised in my home country South Africa, a sunrise is believed to be a significant emblem as it symbolises a promise for rebirth and change.

Franco Jooste and model

Having only scratched the surface of this idea, it took me on a journey back to my past, when I was 15 immigrating with my parents, leaving behind the familiar culture of South Africa to go to the beautiful landscapes of Aotearoa. As you can imagine this would be one of the most life-changing things someone could go through, especially as a teenager.

The sunrise on the front bodice symbolises my main theme, with the rays reflecting my age at the time. The lines on the side panels form a fence-like shape, representing the isolation and alienation I felt going to college and not being able to make friends for a while due to the fear of judgement for not being able to talk English that well, the fear of people making comments about coming from a third world country, and also not just being “another immigrant” but being a queer one too. I wanted my garment to tell a story, a story where I display key memories, and those hard moments that transformed me into who I am today, I showed this by having the garment literally change have the back fall open.

Franco Jooste and model

Franco Jooste design

Franco Jooste design - side view

The loose tension of the cords in the back of the bodice symbolises me letting go of the pressure of trying to fit in and celebrate my differences. The draping on the skirt gathers revealing the untouched new dress underneath presenting transformation.

Just like how the surface of the sun changes constantly and the bold orange clouds dance around the sunrise forming different shapes, we should embrace change, and the endless possibilities of who we could become by also imagining the possibilities of where our future could lead with a society with no prejudice.”

Franco Jooste design - back view