The Foreign Service Journal, July-August 2019

50 JULY-AUGUST 2019 | THE FOREIGN SERVICE JOURNAL technique have shapes with clean, sharp edges. Ikat fabric can be velvet, silk or cotton—or a combination thereof. Umarova wore an asymmetrical gold silk dress of her own design, with a front panel of red and gold velvet ikat, while the model representing Uzbekistan, Dildara Rakhmatullaeva, wore an adras (silk and cotton) A-line dress in a blue and cream ikat print. A band of silver crushed silk began as a pocket on the left hip and moved across the back to the right shoulder, forming a long-sleeved half-jacket attached on one side. “We wanted to showcase up-and-coming international designers.” –Jan du Plain Umarova, who started her company in 2006, says she inte- grates the traditional Uzbek textiles into clothing for a global audience with a goal of, yes, diplomacy. “Fashion is a unique language,” she says. “Sometimes it works better in establishing connections between people from different countries than just words.” When she works with female ambassadors and diplomats, and the wives of diplo- mats, she says, “I see their interest and respect for our culture.” According to Umarova, a former U.S. ambassador to Uzbeki- stan, Pamela Spratlen, has purchased Maru clothing. Uma- rova says that Spratlen’s interest in Uzbek culture and folk arts increased the respect the ambassador received during her time in that country. “This interest was demonstrated in having the products of Uzbek designers,” says Umarova. Dressing for Diplomacy The clothes you choose while posted abroad matter, points out Indira Gumarova, who is married to the Czech ambassador to the United States and helped to organize and curate the Glam- our & Diplomacy show. “The language of clothes is a form of communication,” she says. Gumarova, who has worked in public relations in New York, points to the criticism First Lady Melania Trump faced for her choice of a colonial-style pith helmet on a visit to Kenya, and how Michelle Obama chose clothing by U.S. designers that acknowledged local customs when she traveled abroad. Many people make blunders, she concedes, recalling a time she wore a pair of inexpensive shoes to meet with the first lady of the Czech Republic and Manolo Blahnik, the designer she calls “the king of shoes.” The shoes were ruined in the rain on the way to the Prague Castle, so she showed up to high tea barefoot. “Fortunately, they had a sense of humor, so were laughing with me,” she remembers. Gumarova says she was dismayed when she arrived in Wash- ington and began to entertain at the Czech embassy. “If I put Indira Gumarova of the Czech Republic, right, one of the Glamour & Diplomacy organizers, with fellow models Ljiljana Vidovich of Slovenia and Anamaria Maior of Romania. All three are married to the ambassadors to the United States from their respective countries. ERICTHIEL ERICTHIEL Changu Mazama Newman, wife of David John Newman, Botswana’s ambassador to the United States, models a dress by designer Isabel dos Santos. Inset: Isabel dos Santos, wife of the ambassador of Mozambique to the United States, Carlos dos Santos, wears a dress of her own design.