Julie Bishop gives stylish nod to Carla Zampatti as runways kick off

Carla Zampatti was remembered at the opening of Australian Fashion Week on Monday, with former foreign minister Julie Bishop among those paying tribute to the style icon.

Ms Bishop, the former foreign minister and self-described champion of “fashion diplomacy”, wore one of Zampatti’s final, yet-to-be-released, designs to dedicate a runway at Sydney’s Carriageworks events space to the late designer.

Known as the Carla Zampatti Runway, the space will be named in perpetuity after the Australian fashion icon, who died on April 3 after sustaining serious injuries in a fall at the opera in late March.

Wearing the navy lace top, Ms Bishop paid tribute to Zampatti, whose clothes she wore for many years in her various political roles. “Timeless, flawless, elegant and without pretension, Carla Zampatti’s designs reflected the woman she was,” Ms Bishop said.

Zampatti’s daughter, Bianca Spender, also spoke at the event. “A classic runway show still reigns supreme as the most compelling way to launch the creative vision of a collection,” Spender, who has her own fashion label, said. “Mum was aware of this, and continued to be motivated to showcase her designs on the runway more than 110 seasons on!”

Zampatti’s two other children, Alex Schuman and Allegra Spender, were also at the morning ceremony.

The dedication follows weeks of discussions between Zampatti’s family, fashion week’s organiser, IMG, and the NSW government about a fitting tribute to the veteran designer, who showed at the first Australian Fashion Week in 1996, and, prior to today, was the last brand to take to the runway in 2019 before COVID forced the cancellation of last year’s event.

In line with COVID guidelines, hundreds of attendees at fashion week, including top editors, retail buyers and influencers, are being temperature checked daily, sporting the accessory du jour: a pink wristband confirming screening.