Academy
of Art University
Graduation Fashion Show
Design: Vincent Thomas
Connors
Co-written by Armistead
Johnson and Evan Sung
Photographed by Evan Sung
For the first
time ever, San Francisco's esteemed Academy of
Art University sent off their graduating Fashion
students in high style with not one, but two,
full-on runway shows in New York City. The Academy
of Art prides itself on being a "professional" school
where working professionals pass on their wealth
of knowledge to young, gifted students eager
to unleash their creativity on the marketplace,
sowing innovation, and leaving the uninspired
and the mediocre in their wake. These end-of-term
fashion shows have been a regular Academy gift
to their students, but as successful New York
textile-designer and Art Academy alum, Aviva
Stanoff said, "It's come a LONG way!" Working
with the New York boutique PR-agency Patrice
Tanaka & Co. and their crack publicists,
the Academy of Art showcased their outgoing class
of 2004 with a Thursday night show at New York's
Splashlight studios, a trendy fashion photo studio
with blindingly white walls and dizzyingly high
ceilings, and a Saturday show at no less than
the Grand Ballroom at the Plaza Hotel!
People braved a
downpour to make their way to the Far West Side
for Thursday night's premiere runway show at Splashlight
Studios. The show was buzzing with the excitement
and sentimentality of a normal cap and gown graduation
ceremony, only instead of bright caps and gowns,
the guests of honor wore trendy clothing while
their graduate "theses" were modeled
by some of the youngest, poutiest, skinniest people
New York's modeling agencies could provide. Though
the audience included some of the usual disposable
camera toting parents and cheering friends, the
front row also hosted some of fashion's biggest
names, including Nicole Miller, Missoni, Zac Posen,
Vogue, Nylon, and of course, NewYorkCool.com. It
was a testament to the
Amy Fink |
appeal and talent
of the young designers and the long-standing ties
between the Art Academy Fashion department and
the rarefied world of Haute Couture. Missoni was
gracious enough to spend some time talking with
New York Cool, and when asked what makes the Academy
of Art so special, he told us that very few institutions
in the world invest as much time and faith in their
students as the Academy of Art does. Missoni told
us that no school in Italy, certainly a glittering
capital of the fashion world, provides their students
with the same kind of professional-level showcase
that the students of the Academy of Art enjoy,
and deserve! The Thursday show was followed by
a cocktail where the graduates could rub elbows
and network with some of their fashion world idols
and while enjoying the spotlight cast upon them
for just a few hours more. Presiding proudly over
the festivities were Academy of Art Fashion Department
director Gladys Perint Palmer, and Graduate Director
of Fashion, Simon Ungless.
Wei Chieh Chang |
Wei Chieh Chang |
Shweta Deliwala |
Steven Moomjian |
Joanne Hu |
Steven Moomjian |
As the show itself
was about to begin, everyone took their seats and
a trance-like electronic beat set the stage for
the parade of designs, some colorful and whimsical,
others more steely and architectural, and all sorts
of attitudes in between. The fun, safari-colored,
urban-hip designs of Shweta Deliwali were eye-catching.
The elegant, structural designs of Joanne Hu were
cerebral yet sexy in their geometry. Another stand
out was Lynn Christiansen's medieval blends of
fashion and sculpture. We got a kick out of her "ball
and chain" dress, belted with scores of dangling
little spiked balls, and complete with a swinging
mace accessory!
Lynn Christiansen
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