ISSUE
Friday, August 15, 2025
Volume 16 . Issue 72
Since 2001, visitors from around the globe have been treated to the "twin-wonders" of Nelson in the form of the World of WearableArt (WOW) and Classic Cars Museum.
Displaying one of Australasia's largest private collections of vintage cars, visitors here in the museum are also treated to more than 70 World of WearableArt garments. In this, designers create their garments for categories ranging from wearable art for children to breathtaking Avant Garde and open section garments, wearable art inspired by flora, fauna, and the cultures of the South Pacific, and garments aiming for recognition in creative excellence, costume, and film, Man Unleashed and the bizarre bra categories, inform the museum curators.
Interestingly, in its permanent historical collection, from among hundreds of entries that arrive in Nelson every autumn, WOW has displayed two from India.
One is the garment named, The Weaver Finch Colony, which had won the WOWFactor Award in the open section in 2007. Created by N P Jayaraj with coconut and banana fibres, bamboo, cotton, fusing, and rexine lining, the garment is inspired by the process of weaver bird building its nest.
Another is called Jantar Mantar created by Khadimul Islam, which received an honourable mention in the bizarre bra section in 2012. Made from iron, plastic, and reflective sheets, the garment got its name from the Sanskrit word Yantra Mantra meaning instruments and formulae or literally, 'Magical Device', noted Mr Islam.
The entire exhibition changes in April and November each year, and the annual highlight that every designer looks forward to is the spectacular and highly-theatrical WOW performances held in Wellington every spring. The event—WOW Awards Show—started in Nelson in 1987 with a single evening show in a country cottage. Now it has grown so much that last year, designers from 40 countries entered garments in the competition with finalists from 14 being selected to appear on stage.
Here too, two entries from India made it to the list of eventual winners.
Mai (I) by Pritam Singh and Vishnu Ramesh from Gujarat won the spyglass creative excellence section, while Heritage Rocks by Shantanu Singh was the runner-up in the first time entrant category.
Since 2001, visitors from around the globe have been treated to the "twin-wonders" of Nelson in the form of the World of WearableArt (WOW) and Classic Cars Museum.
Displaying one of Australasia's largest private collections of vintage cars, visitors here in the museum are also treated to more...
Since 2001, visitors from around the globe have been treated to the "twin-wonders" of Nelson in the form of the World of WearableArt (WOW) and Classic Cars Museum.
Displaying one of Australasia's largest private collections of vintage cars, visitors here in the museum are also treated to more than 70 World of WearableArt garments. In this, designers create their garments for categories ranging from wearable art for children to breathtaking Avant Garde and open section garments, wearable art inspired by flora, fauna, and the cultures of the South Pacific, and garments aiming for recognition in creative excellence, costume, and film, Man Unleashed and the bizarre bra categories, inform the museum curators.
Interestingly, in its permanent historical collection, from among hundreds of entries that arrive in Nelson every autumn, WOW has displayed two from India.
One is the garment named, The Weaver Finch Colony, which had won the WOWFactor Award in the open section in 2007. Created by N P Jayaraj with coconut and banana fibres, bamboo, cotton, fusing, and rexine lining, the garment is inspired by the process of weaver bird building its nest.
Another is called Jantar Mantar created by Khadimul Islam, which received an honourable mention in the bizarre bra section in 2012. Made from iron, plastic, and reflective sheets, the garment got its name from the Sanskrit word Yantra Mantra meaning instruments and formulae or literally, 'Magical Device', noted Mr Islam.
The entire exhibition changes in April and November each year, and the annual highlight that every designer looks forward to is the spectacular and highly-theatrical WOW performances held in Wellington every spring. The event—WOW Awards Show—started in Nelson in 1987 with a single evening show in a country cottage. Now it has grown so much that last year, designers from 40 countries entered garments in the competition with finalists from 14 being selected to appear on stage.
Here too, two entries from India made it to the list of eventual winners.
Mai (I) by Pritam Singh and Vishnu Ramesh from Gujarat won the spyglass creative excellence section, while Heritage Rocks by Shantanu Singh was the runner-up in the first time entrant category.
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