Jojie Lloren: Tales from a French sojourn

I have seen the future of Philippine fashion and it is Jojie Lloren.

Jojie Lloren once confessed to me that early in his career, he had hoped that his path would be like that of Yves Saint Laurent who, at a young age, created his own couture house, built a body of work based on his very distinct look and gained universal recognition for it. Then he added, with a gentle, self-deprecating laugh, "But it seems as if I’m going to be more like Dior, who became successful at a later age." Well, regardless of his age, Jojie’s time is now.

A little history: Jojie Lloren studied Clothing Technology at the University of the Philippines, intent on a career in fashion. A few years after, he was able to put up a ready-to-wear business, with his own brand at Robinsons Department Store. In an effort to jumpstart his career, he and some friends planned to put together a show but the producer backed out. Jojie told his friends that they couldn’t depend on outsiders, they had to help themselves. That was back in the early ’90s. He banded with some friends (Robi Lolin, Dong Omaga Diaz, Avel Bacudio, Sylver Custorio, among others) to form The Young Designers Group. Jojie was the group’s first president. They launched their group at the now defunct Euphoria and made a splash. They caught the eye of Inno Sotto and Richard Tann who invited them to join the Fashion Watch Series. Slowly, the YDG and its members were gaining media exposure. But some more than others.

Jojie joined the FDCP (Fashion and Design Council of the Philippines)/GTEB (Garments and Textiles Export Board) Design contest to field a representative to the Concours International des Jeunes Createurs de Mode and walked off with the top prize. After his win in Manila, he went on to Paris, where he also beat out young designers from all over the world with an entry made of bamboo and wood and beads melded together into a slinky sexy number.

Jojie’s win earned him a scholarship at fashion’s equivalent of Harvard, L’Ecole de la Chambre Syndicale de La Couture Parisienne. But even before Jojie left for Paris, he created a stir by quietly but very definitely stealing the show at Abel Iloco, a group gala fashion show that highlighted the use of the traditional weaves of the Ilocos region, as interpreted by designers such as Rajo Laurel, Randy Ortiz and Gerry Katigbak.

I first fell in love with Jojie’s work when stylist Millet Arzaga showed me some bamboo neckpieces, bracelets and headgear that had been mixed with some gold beads, accessories that Jojie had made himself. I loved how the bamboo managed to look both ethnic and modern and that at the same time, it wasn’t that heavy or difficult to wear. I asked who made it and she made the introduction. And the brash bold pieces were nothing like the designer who made them. Jojie is a gentle soul and spoke very softly. In that same collection that he had created for Fashion Watch, he had also made some bustiers from strips of bamboo, which made it to the cover of one of Preview’s big fashion issues. When Jojie told me how he had to soak the bamboo overnight so that he could get the right flexibility to manipulate the strips, I was blown away by his persistence and creativity. After his Abel Iloco stint, I was assigned to interview Jojie and I trekked to his workshop and residence in Taguig. Among his pile of books, I noticed a book of patterns for children’s clothes. I asked him about it because I knew that he only made clothes for women. He said, "I always buy books about patterns and I experiment with them." It hit me right there and then: This designer not only has creativity in spades, he is willing to master his craft.

Fast forward: Jojie has come home. Fashion watchers are curious–what comes next? What has he learned in Paris? What are his plans?

When Jojie arrived for the interview, he said in jest, "Is this the third time (we were doing a story together)? Meron pa bang masasabi?" There was a lot said, yes, and so much hope for what comes next.

Not Exactly ‘La Vie En Rose’

Jojie did not get off to a good start in Paris. He found his first apartment through what he calls "their version of buy and sell."

"It was at the foot of Sacre Coeur and I thought, if it’s near a church which is also a tourist spot, it must be OK. But at night, I would hear screaming and police sirens, and I would think, ‘What is going on?’" Jojie remembers. A friend later told him that he was in a dangerous neighborhood. He quickly searched for a new apartment and luckily found a tiny studio in the Marais. "That’s like their Malate, so happy na ako." Jojie was also with Joan Bitagcol, who was also trying her luck in Paris. Shortly after, they were joined by designer Vic Barba and events planner Tim Yap and they all squeezed into Jojie’s flat. "The four of us, one bed and the floor. That’s it," he sums up.

But when his friends left and Jojie was left alone, homesickness quickly set in. "All I did was my grocery and laundry. I didn’t have classes yet, and I had no TV, no radio. I would just look out at my neighbors, the people passing by. There was this one neighbor in particular who had a nice big apartment. He noticed me looking at him so every night, he would turn on all the lights all over his apartment, as if to say, ‘Ayan, para makita mo na lahat!’"

Back To L’ecole

When classes started, Jojie’s life took on a happier turn. His life opened up and his true Parisian experience began.

Every day, he would wake up at 7 a.m., leave his apartment at 8:30, just in time for classes at 9. Classes would then go on until six. Jojie would go out to dinner with friends or they would hang out at each other’s flats. His classes were Draping (his favorite subject), Design, Textile Design, Textiles, Hand Sewing and History of Costume. Lectures take up about 10 percent of the class and the rest of the time, they are working on their creations.

Jojie was able to follow the purely French instruction through the interpretation of some bilingual classmates. He also says, "Technically, what I learned here helped me a lot. My teachers were surprised that I could follow even if I didn’t really know French, but I was already working with the flat pattern method, so it’s not that I had to unlearn anything, I was on the right track."

But it was his Draping class that proved to be his epiphany. "I really don’t have any background in Draping and my teacher in Draping worked at the House of Dior under YSL and then moved to Chanel. I learned that with draping, the possibilities are limitless!"

Jojie reveals that for hand sewing, it took them three months just to make the back of a skirt. He says, "But when you are really good at sewing, it makes the garment so special. Like my teacher, she showed us this skirt, you could not see a single stitch. That’s how good it was."

What good is all this technical information? Jojie explains, "When you know how to construct a garment intellectually, you will be able to achieve the goals (of your design). For example, in making clothes, you want to avoid bulk. When you know how to really make the garment, you will know how to make the collar, the sleeve so smooth that there’s no bulk."

School was not all work. There were some moments of levity. For example, in his Design class, he admits, "You cannot be designing straight for six hours so there were times that even our teachers would just make chica."

Another funny episode was Jojie’s brief brush with celebrity. One of his teachers had seen an article on Jojie’s win in the Concours. She showed off the clipping to Jojie’s classmates one morning when he was absent. When he got to class in the afternoon, his classmates were all teasing him. "I never told them about the contest. I didn’t want any expectations or additional pressures. But they kept on teasing me about being a celebrity." His teacher even made him pose as he draped over his figure form, calling him a "celebrite."

A Moveable Feast

Jojie’s "education" was not confined to his classes. "The city itself is so inspiring. The beauty never fades, you just never get used to it. Just the awe at the grandeur of it," he gushes, obviously still in love with Paris. His favorite spots? "The Louvre at night. So romantic. Pero naka-ka depress din. The Paris Opera. I wanted to do a fashion shoot there. The flea market at Clignancourt. But there are really too many to name."

Over and above the city itself, Jojie found the street style exhilarating. "So expressive. You can get so many ideas just watching the people, the way they sling their bags, the way they knot their scarves, you’ll notice them right away. I guess they just make more of an effort. When I looked at the way the youngsters there would dress, I began to feel that the way I dressed was so traditional."

Two images stood out among the others: "This guy who I would always see walking in front of my apartment. He had a black overcoat with a train, and I really loved to watch him walk in that coat."

The other image was the complete opposite. "A well-coiffed woman, in a nice suit and pearls. I saw her in the metro and I was thinking, ‘Sa Manila, naka-kotse na siya.’"

How did the dream stack up against the reality? The question makes Jojie a little wistful. He says, "When I left for Paris, I was optimistic and hopeful that I would land a good job. In fact, my fear was that I would never see Manila. Because, I will never turn down a good offer, and I knew that if I did get a good offer, I would stay there." But the job marker was not that rosy. Jojie was able to assist backstage at a Gaultier show, but was unable to land a more permanent position.

He adds, "First and foremost, my greatest learning experience there was my lifestyle. Naghirap ako. But it became a driving force for me, it made me think, ‘I want to better myself.’ There was this one night, I was so tired from classes, and on the way home, I realized that I still had to cook and do so many things pa for school.’"

"In Paris, I learned what my limitations are, and just how far I can go, as a designer and a person." Jojie declares, wiser, more realistic, but still hopeful.

French Exit

When I came home, I thought, ‘Now, I really have to work.’ But I’m doing it with a full heart,"Jojie says with equanimity and determination, rather than resignation. He says that his French experience has enriched his aesthetic vision. He says, "It’s (his style) more adventurous and daring."

As he sets out to make a name for himself, Jojie says, "I still want to keep my ready-to-wear business. (For my made-to-order) I am hoping that I will be able to show regularly what I want to do for a season and what I show, that’s what I’ll do for my clients. I don’t want to do 10 weddings a month because I want to be involved in each piece that comes out. And I don’t want to do clothes that are not related to what I am."

His dream client: "Discriminating, to the point of being maarte. That’s what will help me improve. But I also want them to give me a free hand."

Jojie feels a great debt of gratitude to the GTEB and the FDCP and his way of giving back is by imparting his knowledge. He mentored the 23 finalists in the last FDCP Design contest and he advises the FDCP on how the contest can improve. "That’s my payback. Teaching what I learned."

Jojie was no overnight success. He did his time in the trenches. He ran his business from Paris, sending designs to his friend who took over his shop while he was studying. So he knows whereof he speaks when I ask him to give some pointers to aspiring designers out there.

He says, "Young designers must be serious. They mustn’t think that it’s just play. Although a show is good for keeping your mind fertile, it is important to remember the work ethic, too."

And defying all the doomsayers, Jojie thinks that international recognition of the Filipino fashion designer and the industry as a whole is not just a dream. "It’s not impossible. With each contest and each Filipino designer that is working, it will create an interest in the Filipino designer. We just have to move forward, forward, forward."

When I press Jojie to reveal more of his future plans, he is vague. The important thing is that he does have big plans for the coming year. In my last interview with Jojie, he told me that he shares the same birthday with Joe Salazar and Pepito Albert, and along with these two greats, he also shares a certain mystique, the true mark of an enigma. There is no doubt in my mind that he will soon join the pantheon, side by side with his birthday-mates.