Designer Prince Padilla is asking the right question: What goes beyond aesthetic and outcomes?
This One To Watch feature is an excerpt from MEGA’s June 2023 issue
Growing up in the United Kingdom, designer Prince Padilla was always exposed to creative people. He had the privilege to do what he wanted, and he believes it’s important to mention that it’s coming from a place of privilege. As a designer who now works in Manila, he saw that the majority of the creatives he has met—who are as equally talented as him—didn’t have that privilege or option.
At 26, Padilla acknowledges that his identity as a designer is an accumulative process that has been happening over the years, and even until now. “I don’t think you ever stop finding out who you are,” he says. “It’s a natural thing to constantly rediscover yourself, even parts you didn’t know existed. I don’t think I’m there yet. But at this moment, I think I’m pretty happy with where I am.”
The way the young designer likes his creative process is quite instinctive, and that the formal education he acquired from the Manchester School of Art is critical to how he works. As he sees it, it’s important to acknowledge that even though one doesn’t necessarily need education to be a creative person, it’s vital to have a certain foundation to build from.
“My design process is a reaction to my personal experiences,” Padilla shares. “Aesthetically speaking, I do like to design for myself. What would I wear? It’s that personal for me. My work is basically an invitation to the things I find beautiful, to what I want to have a dialogue about. I think that’s important with our generation because we should be able to say more with our work, other than what’s nice to look at.”
Manchester is one of the first industrialized cities in the world, and it is from this very historical element where Padilla got his influence as a visionary. There are various types of workwear as well as inspiration from the music scene, where one will find adventurous individuals who aren’t afraid of expressing themselves through fashion. And this is exactly what he is trying to celebrate with his brand Novel: the freedom of self-expression.
“That’s the main purpose of the brand right now,” Padilla explains. “To have a different offering than what currently exists here in the Philippines. When you say that something is novel, it’s new and it makes you question things. There are people out there who do want to wear something else, who want to feel a little more adventurous with their clothes, choices, and style—I want them to come to me.”
Read more about Prince Padilla’s creative vision in MEGA’s June 2023 issue, now available on Readly, Magzter, Press Reader and Zinio
Photography DENNIS SULIT assited by ANTONIO VAZQUEZ. Creative Direction NICOLE ALMERO. Fashion Direction RYUJI SHIOMITSU. Beauty Direction MIA CASTRO. Styling QUAYNE PEDROSO. Makeup NADYNNE ESGUERRA. Hair CHRISTIAN BOJO. Model REIMI of LUMINARY MODELS and ONIE DE GUZMAN of MERCATOR. Shot on location ESPACIO CREATIVO ESCOLTA. Fashion Assistance and Shoot Coordination BITHIA REYES. Special thanks to BELG of ESPACIO CREATIVO ESCOLTA and MIKI MICLAT of MERCATOR.
