Now that this season of “Project Runway” is over, maybe you’re itching for more fashion, craving more cutting edge designs and longing to hear Tim Gunn’s voice again. Lucky for you, you won’t have to wait long to get your fix, thanks to the Textile and Apparel Student Association’s annual fashion show.
Although they can’t give you any more Tim Gunn, this year’s show, titled “Selvedge: Revealing Edges of Expression,” includes 93 runway looks by 22 student designers from the School of Human Ecology’s Textile and Apparel design program, according to Jen Thompson, runway producer and SoHE lecturer. A culmination of one year’s worth of work, the 93 looks were chosen from 180 submissions, mostly by sophomores and juniors in the program.
This show wasn’t always such a large production, however. Ariel Arnson, a junior in the Textile and Apparel design program, TASA vice president, SoHE communications director and a designer in this year’s show, said a grant from Kohl’s department store last year enabled not only a larger venue and more professional show, but also the start of a fashion show class, which turned out to be a huge success.
“The first day of class, the designers expected to see the same 10-15 girls that are always involved show up, but we were all in shock when almost 100 students came to the class,” Arnson said. “The students included other SoHE majors and even students from art and theater departments. We were able to delegate these some 80 students enrolled in the class to different committees such as gallery, runway, model, staging and promotions.”
There was also a pre-production fashion show class of 30 students to facilitate the marketing and promotion of the show and even a Creative Direction team that came up with the “Selvedge” name.
Alongside the show will be “Design 2010,” a gallery of student work. This gallery showcases 97 pieces from 50 students in the Textile and Apparel design and interior design programs, along with selected final projects from the Textile and Apparel design 2010 spring classes. To decide what would appear in the gallery, two jurors selected from all submissions. This gallery, a tradition since 1992, is being held this year as a one-day presentation.
With all the hard work and long hours put into this show, everyone involved knows that it is all worth it at the end.
“As designers, showcasing your work in such a professional light in front of 1,200 people is a great opportunity and a glimpse at your possible career potential. The juried fashion show pushes designers to make garments better than before — designers aren’t just making garments to hand in for class, and then get tucked away in their closets, they are making garments to be seen and shown off,” Arnson said.
This show is a big deal, not only to the student designers and coordinators and everyone behind the scenes, but also to the audience. It’s hard to imagine what kind of things would appear in a unique show like this, so Arnson and Thompson gave us a bit of a peek into what kinds of things will be on this year’s runway. Arnson said flower fairies inspired her two looks.
“To capture their ethereal look, I created my own dye colors and hand painted my own floral patterns onto silk and silk chiffon. Therefore, the fabric is completely unique.”
Thompson added, “We have so much variety this year, everything from a shift dress made out of wax paper to a to a shoulder piece made out of forks.”
Clearly “Selvedge” will be packed with the most talented and creative student work on campus, and it will give non-design majors a peek into the lives of these talented students.
“The best thing about SoHE is that we are a small school within a large university,” Arnson said. “The fashion show is a way of showing our large university that even though we are a small program, we are kind of fabulous.”
The runway show will be at the Monona Terrace Saturday, May 1 at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. “Design 2010” will be open one hour before each show, and a reception and an awards ceremony will follow. Tickets are $10 for the 2 p.m. show and $25 for the 7 p.m. show. For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.fashionshow.wisc.edu.
