Evening gowns! The most exciting part that I (and I speak for the majority) look forward to. Evening gowns, especially in Miss Universe, have gained momentum in the past few years.The level of intricacy and detailing in the recent years has taken over the simple satin finished gowns that are usually associated with pageantry (thanks to Designers all over the world to contribute to this phenomenon). Be it Dayana Mendoza’s famous twirl or Zuleyka Rivera’s chainmail dress, the decade of 2001-2010 proved to be the years of excess where colors and fabric, both were celebrated.
So, to formulate the gown of the decade 2011-2020, apart from the gowns of the titleholder, I decided to put the gowns of the 1st Runner Ups too for the poll on my Instagram account! Let’s take a trip down the memory lane to see the Miss Universe Gowns placed with their runner ups or should, I say Vice Miss Universes’
Ultimately only one gown was supposed to be standing alone, ticking the areas like- design, overall styling, modernity and its impact!
And the gown of the decade is *insert drum roll*
The ‘Sunrise’ by Biji-La Maison de Couture worn by Miss Universe 2019 Zozibini Tunzi from South Africa!
The gown is designed and produced by Biji-La Maison de Couture under the creative direction of Werner Wessels, the Creative Director at Miss South Africa
The gown took more than two months to prepare
It has around 1,32,000 beads to decorate and is priced around R208000
It takes influences from Wakanda fashion, the futuristic hypothetical country portrayed in Marvel’s The Black Panther
Talking about the representation behind the gown, the 2019 edition of Miss Universe had contestants explaining why they chose the particular gown. To this, Zozibini, as Miss Universe South Africa, explained
“My dress symbolizes where I come from. It presents the brown of the sand and the blue of the ocean. I feel like I have South Africa with me on this stage”
A simple sentiment behind the gown amplified African representation. It stemmed closely with Zozi’s ‘taking up space’ message as her being the only African in the top 10 line-up.
The influences on the gown look similarly tied in with ‘The Black Panther’ fashion and mood. Keeping the heritage influences intact and making it futuristic and edgy, a nod to Afrofuturism. The shoulder pads, the neck piece attachment and the beading are evidently drawn from the iconic Oscar winning costume design by Ruth E. Carter. The look and feel of the gown can be considered as one of the ensembles of the movie.
The Sunrise gown honors the African legacy and the movie did so much to represent the different tribes of Wakanda having hints of Africa as a whole continent. The gown did not just honor the lineage but also represented who Zozibini is as a person and that’s a great lesson to learn- Invest in something that has sentiment value and represents a bigger picture!
A special thanks to everyone who voted for the gown of the decade! Your choices are spectacular and I couldn’t agree more!
Lastly, let’s have a look at the other two gowns that stand equally in praise of being remarkable in the decade of 2011 to 2020!
The Mayon gown by Mak Tumang worn by Miss Universe 2018 Catriona Gray
It has a whole Wikipedia page dedicated to it!
Designed to represent the active volcanoes of the Philippines, the Lava gown or Mayon Gown, as titled initially, honors Gray’s maternal state of Albay.
The classic sheath silhouette with cutouts that would allow Gray’s to exercise her now iconic Lava walk
The gown can be dubbed as ‘Narrative Gowns’ for it’s representational value and the ‘It’ factor which has that inclusive factor of representing the bigger picture
This gown went on to encourage the contestants and organizations alike to give that unique treatment to their finale gowns!
Alfredo Barraza for Miss Universe 2014 Paulina Vega
Welcoming the minimalism wave that hit the world, this silver columnar gown did ‘less fuss’ in the best.
It is one of the rare gowns that have synced with the crown, DIC Miss Universe Crown having the similar columns depicting the Manhattan skyline.
The stripes on the gown do remind of the straids on the Greek pillars, giving a taller appearance
It has become a memorable gown as Paulina won the crown for Colombia after five decades
Fun Coincidence- Miss Universe 2013 won in a silver gown and so did her successor Paulina in 2014. Both 2018 and 2019 gowns were inspired by the natural fauna of their home countries i.e Volcano for Philippines and the coast of South Africa.
-//p.
P.s: Images belong to their respective owners. I do not claim any right over them.
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