New collections: Hanae Mori, a Japanese fashion designer, will present her collections for the fourth time in this month's World Masters' Haute Couture Collections show in Dalian.

Super clothes and supermodels will abound September 15 to 19 at the 2001 COFCO Yantai Great Wall Dalian International Fashion Festival World Masters' Haute Couture Collections.

The show, annually held in the coastal city of Dalian since 1996, has garnered much media attention.

Over the years, it has showcased more than 3,000 pieces designed by 30 renowned couturiers from such countries as France, Italy, Japan and the United States.

The couture show is on par with the fashion weeks held in Paris and Milan, Jacques Mouclier, former president of Federation Francaise de la Couture has said.

This year's gala is expected to cause even more sensation.

Three renowned couture designers from Asia, Europe and America have been invited to showcase their unique 2001-2002 autumn-winter couture collections.

Japanese couture designer Hanae Mori, the only Asian member of the Federation Francaise de la Couture, will attend the event for the fourth time.

She will bring 100 pieces of her latest works.

The East-meets-West philosophy embodied in Mori's works has long been praised in the fashion circle. Some butterfly imagery is expected to be presented as well.

Stephane Rolland, chief designer of Jean Louis Scherrer - France's classic fashion brand for royal families, stars and magnates - will present his creative collections at the gala, too.

The 35-year-old couturier merges his artistic mastery and beaming vigour into the elegant content of the brand. He blends fashion arts with high-tech and new materials, resulting in a striking charm.

Youthful Roman-born American designer Carlo Ponti will also show off his classic dressings, which usually boast of impeccably good taste and imaginative cutting.

Ponti is famous for mixing free and modern styles typical of Americans with traditional European tailoring.

The appearance of Ponti and Rolland, two new-generation couturiers, will likely prompt a debate between classicism and modernism, said Li Yao, director of the Organizing Committee of the World Masters' Haute Couture Collections and director of the Dalian Broadcast & TV Bureau.

In addition, Yumi Katsura, a famous Japanese bridal designer and chairperson of Japan Bridal Association, will stage a spectacular outdoor show of her Garden Wedding Collections on September 19 at the Fountain Square of the Golden Pebble Beach Convention Centre & Resort. The event will mark her fourth appearance at the fashion show.

The wedding dresses will be displayed in the evening. The setting will be coastal, with beach tables and large umbrellas scattered across the stage, beside a fountain and on some grass. The audience can enjoy the show while mingling at a cocktail party.

Bands will be invited to perform world classic operas, Chinese classical folk music and Western music as models saunter down the catwalk.

The show is sponsored by Yantai COFCO (China National Cereals, Oils & Foodstuffs Import & Export Co) Winery Co Ltd, reflecting the gradual commercialization of fashion shows. It also indicates that Dalian International Fashion Festival has exerted a considerable influence upon businesses at home and abroad.

On another style front, the 2001 French Handicrafts, Crystal Products and Perfume Exhibition will be held September 15 to 18.

This event is co-sponsored by the Confederation Francaise des Metiers d' Art (French Federation of Handicrafts Industry) and the Organizing Committee of the World Masters' Haute Couture Collections.

The exhibition aims to put traditional and typical European handicrafts, crystal products and perfumes on Dalian stage.

Famous labels like Christian Dior, Louis Vuitton, Baccarat, Lalique and Christofle will be showcased.