Design and tradition come together in an exhibition showcasing Irish talent, writes DEIRDRE MCQUILLAN

THERE’S NOTHING LIKE a common challenge to test the creativity of young Irish fashion designers. It’s not often they get a chance after college to step outside the demanding zone of commercial constraints to make something that doesn’t have to sell, doesn’t have to cater to the market and can instead be a purely aesthetic expression of their ideas and ingenuity. Recently, a number of Irish milliners were asked to customise a pink beret for Breast Cancer Awareness and, in a typical masterstroke, Philip Treacy reworked the international ribbon symbol in green, white and yellow grosgrain to pin on the beanie. Last month Absolut Mode commissioned five Irish designers to create fashion pieces inspired by the brand’s limited edition new bottle. The five – Sorcha O’Raghallaigh, Natalie Coleman, Helen Steele, Eilis Boyle and Simone Rocha – have all made names for themselves here and abroad and carry on a collaborative tradition Absolut set with fashion giants such as Tom Ford, Gianni Versace and Jean Paul Gaultier. That association began in 1987 with photographer Steven Meisel and continued in the 1990s with Manolo Blahnik, Vivienne Westwood and Stella McCartney.

The Irish designers selected need little introduction. Simone Rocha’s star has continued to rise since her MA graduation from Central St Martin’s in London last year. Her clothes were showcased in Colette in Paris during couture week and a capsule range for Topshop launched in September.

Sorcha O’Raghallaigh from Birr interned with Galliano in Paris and Diane von Furstenberg in New York. She sprang into the limelight when Lady Gaga wore one of her creations on the Graham Norton BBC television show. Helen Steele has won acclaim for her work as an artist in Europe, the US and the Middle East. She also collaborated with Joanne Hynes at London Fashion Week and has created a new range of wearable art (WART) for spring 2012.

Natalie Coleman, who has shown her collections in Berlin, Copenhagen, Amsterdam, New York and Paris, recently returned from London to her native Carrickmacross to work on her label and explore Irish heritage crafts.

Eilis Boyle is known for ethereally beautiful dresses and knits in luxurious natural fabrics, which are sold in her shop, Bow, in the Powerscourt Townhouse Centre.

The results of their assignment, these exhibition pieces for Absolut Mode, styled by Aisling Farinella and photographed here by Richard Gilligan, will be on display in the Powerscourt Townhouse Centre on December 1st-22nd.