Sebastian Gunawan

Sebastian Gunawan (born 2 July 1967 in Jakarta), also known as Seba, is an Indonesian fashion designer. He is known for his designs of ornate evening gowns.

He is a member of the Indonesian Fashion Designers Association.

Early life and education Gunawan was born in Jakarta, Indonesia on 2 July 1967. At the age of 14, he developed interests in fashion designing, which he developed by sketching clothing designs as a high school student and working part-time at seamstress. Pursuing this, he enrolled at the LPTB Susan Budiharjo in 1985, a school of fashion in Jakarta run by its namesake—a first generation Indonesian fashion designer. This was followed by further studies at the Fashion Institute of Design and Merchandising in Los Angeles, USA where he graduated and obtained the Certificate of Fashion Design. In 1991, he graduated from the Istituto Artistico Dell' Abbigliamento Marangoni in Milan, Italy with a specialisation in fashion illustration. In Milan, he met his wife and business partner, Cristina Panarese.

In 1992, following his return to his native Indonesia, Gunawan launched his first collection of clothing with Panarese, entitled "Sebastian Gunawan". This was followed by his fashion show debut in 1995 with a collection named Potret Hidup ("A Life's Portrait"), featuring evening and ball gowns, which later became his signature items.

In 1997 with Panarese, he introduced his first ready-to-wear collection, Votum, which became his first to be sold in stores. In the same year, he made his debuts at the Kuala Lumpur Fashion Week, the Hong Kong Fashion Week, and the Southeast Asia International Fashion Show in Nanning, China.