Fashion czar

For many of his 40 years as a fashion designer, Jose "Pitoy" Moreno has promoted the country in fashion shows held in capital cities of the world. Three months from now, the Cultural Center of the Philippines will be holding a tribute for him – the first time it will honor a designer.

Most times he lives in a modest-looking three-and-a-half story house in Malate, at other times in some of his many houses in Manila and the provinces. Inside the Malate house are pictures adorning antique tables and walls showing he has moved with kings and heads of state and dressed their ladies. He is shown in the elegant company of the late US President Ronald Reagan, President Ferdinand Marcos, King Hassan of Morocco, and the Russian dancer Nureyev.

And, dressed in his unsurpassed beadwork, embroidery and handpainting are Nancy Reagan, Pat Nixon, Betty Ford, Queen Sirikit of Thailand, Queen Margarretta of Bulgaria, Queen Sophia of Greece, Princess Margaret of Britain, Princess Suga of Japan, the Marquesa de Villaverde, Cristina Ford, Margot Fonteyn and Deeda Blair. And of course, the First Ladies of the Philippines.

His celebrated fashion shows abroad have elicited rave reviews from picky magazines. Vogue, Harper’s Bazaar, Holiday and Women’s Wear Daily. And a most pleasant surprise greeted him when he arrived in France some 25 years ago: Le Figaro’s story about him was headlined, "The Fashion Czar of Asia Comes to Paris to be Crowned." Fashion writers abroad raved over his exquisite creations using jusi, pina and lepanto.

Recently, at an informal dinner in his Malate home, he said, with his characteristic somewhat-shy smile, "All I’d like to do is make Manila the fashion center of the world." He hardly talked as he was constantly checking if his guests were having enough of his home-made binakol (a soup with coconut juice and chicken pieces), kare-kare, rellenong bangus and mango and bagoong salad and red wine from Chile. Simple fare but cooked to please kings and princesses.

Pitoy never thought he’d wind up being famous and – rich? He laughed, but we knew the answer. He simply wanted to finish a college education to please his father, an ilustrado who grew up in Tondo and also produced the famous and witty film maestra, Virgie Moreno. But Pitoy’s classmates at the University of the Philippines, including Celia Laurel (who would become the wife of the late Vice-President Doy Laurel) saw the sketches he made in class to keep from being bored, and they asked him to design clothes – and eventually gowns. Pitoy did get a degree, but before that, he woke up one morning as famous as he never thought he would be.

His excellent coffee table book, PHILIPPINE Costume, chronicles his ascent to world fame. He is one of the earliest exponents of the Maria Clara, inspired by the paintings of Damian Domingo, Fabian de la Rosa, Juan Luna and Felix Resurreccion Hidalgo whose works he studied as a fine arts student. His costumes for the world-famous Bayanihan Dance Company oriented him in the various Filipino customs and traditions, an immersion which would influence his future work.

He was president of the Philippine Couture Association, the first association of Manila designers. He founded the Karilagan International, a fashion-cultural organization which promoted Filipino fashion design here and abroad. His local shows were marvels in their time and his participation in the fashion exhibition at the Seattle World’s Fair and the New York World’s Fair is still the record to reckon with. His collections have circled the globe, and today, he still holds four fashion shows abroad every year, bringing with him some of the most beautiful women of the Philippines for models.

His book is a most interesting project, talking about Philippine costumes and the historical, social and economic forces that contributed to their making.

But what makes it a collector’s item is its showcasing not only the designer’s artistry but also an array of the country’s rich and lovely women. Manila’s profligate social events had hacienderas and heiresses and wives of tycoons competing in their ternos most of which were made by the same designer – Pitoy.

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