The Story of Fashion
BY IVAN MOORE
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Last May, the halls of the Haggin Museum had been transformed into a two-story runway. Generations-old paintings were now serving as vivid backdrops for living works of art created by current and former students of San Joaquin Delta College’s fashion design program.
Fashion Program Coordinator Leslie Asfour and Collection Design Production instructor Jonathan Singer had conceived the show as a way to showcase advanced students' work in a competition setting. The program has hosted fashion shows in the past, but recently they had shifted to a static display format rather than a runway show. Asfour and Singer wanted to combine both elements into a single event, as well as incorporate the roll of the consumer into the process. It would be a microcosm of the reality that students might face in stages of the industry, from concept and design to creation and distribution. The resulting show, helped made possible by Events Production instructor Angie Anaya's class, was the three-day extravaganza "The Story of Fashion: A Journey in Three Parts."
The first chapter of the story took place on the Delta College campus, and consisted of an exhibit of works from the students of Delta’s fashion design, illustration, and merchandising courses.
The second chapter was the evening runway show at the Haggin. Before a crowd of over 350 and an 8-person panel of judges, a procession of 75 models displayed the creations of 12 design students: Layma Aman’s classic glamour. Bianca Kim’s playful (and short) skirts. Emily Cowdrey’s lazy summer. Stefano Lima’s uncompromising edge. Tarahlinda Sanders’ casual seascape. Alesha Pettit’s Socialist rainbow. Krystle Li’s Greek goddesses. Natalie Minori’s Easter parade of silks and satins. Danielle Romero’s streamlined sophistication. James Kubota’s Seven Samurai synthesis. Jewelry designer Lisa's unorthodox accessories.
The student-designers were evaluated based on a six-point criterion by a group of judges representing a mix of academia, fashion, and retail viewpoints. Judges were asked to rate how well the collections conveyed the designers' original concept, the construction and fit of the garments, the relevance of the runway music selection accompanying the presentation, and the collections' ability to be received by the retail industry.
In the end, Tarahlinda Sanders won the third place prize of $300 while Danielle Romero took second place and $500.
But it was second-semester fashion student Mark Eric Garcia Rodriguez’s collection of daring, dark silhouettes that won the day and a prize of $800.
“[The judges] felt his collection had a clear direction and was executed well,” said Asfour. “It was high fashion but still saleable and elegant.”
Rodriguez says he was focused from the beginning on creating a rounded, complete presentation of a line meant to convey the strength of modern women in a traditionally male-dominated infrastructure. The result of this inspiration were garments that despite their salience (or maybe because of it) exuded elegance and sophistication.
"I was focused on creating a good, round, complete presentation," said Rodriguez, who studies business, dance, and music at University of the Pacific. He admitted he was initially hesitant about entering the fashion program at Delta, because of its small size and its distance from a truly metropolitan area. He enrolled after an exhibition of the program piqued his interest, and is now grateful to the Delta instructors and his fellow students for providing the opportunities.
"It's been an enriching experience," he said. "Leslie is a great coach, and Jonathan has become a mentor to me."
Rodriguez said he plans to present a complete collection for Fall 2009, and to enter the design industry after completing the fashion program at Delta and graduating from Pacific.
The third and final chapter of the “Journey” was a fashion sale at Wish List Boutique on Stockton’s Miracle Mile. The sale featured all the designers from the Haggin runway show, and gave customers an opportunity to meet with the designers and purchase their original creations. It was also a way for the student designers to truly test the marketability of their designs and themselves.
“This kind of event can be a reality check for some of the designers,” said Wish List co-owner Cathy Lagorio, who, with co-owner Lindsay Dalonzo, hosted the sale and also served as a judge for the show. “It gives them a chance to receive some interesting feedback, and for finding out who their audience is.”
That’s not to say that to say that the designers should lose heart if their creations weren’t picked up at the sale. Lagorio and Dalonzo pointed out that though only two of the 12 designers offered lines that were market-ready for Wish List, that didn’t mean the other designs wouldn’t be popular with a different group of customers than those loyal to Wish List.
“Every shop has a different demographic,” Lagorio said. While her regular customers might not respond to the works of contest-winner Mark Eric, his designs still thrilled judges and the audience.
“They were dramatic, super-elegant, and had a great attention to detail,” Dalonzo said.
Fashion Program Coordinator Leslie Asfour and Collection Design Production instructor Jonathan Singer had conceived the show as a way to showcase advanced students' work in a competition setting. The program has hosted fashion shows in the past, but recently they had shifted to a static display format rather than a runway show. Asfour and Singer wanted to combine both elements into a single event, as well as incorporate the roll of the consumer into the process. It would be a microcosm of the reality that students might face in stages of the industry, from concept and design to creation and distribution. The resulting show, helped made possible by Events Production instructor Angie Anaya's class, was the three-day extravaganza "The Story of Fashion: A Journey in Three Parts."
The first chapter of the story took place on the Delta College campus, and consisted of an exhibit of works from the students of Delta’s fashion design, illustration, and merchandising courses.
The second chapter was the evening runway show at the Haggin. Before a crowd of over 350 and an 8-person panel of judges, a procession of 75 models displayed the creations of 12 design students: Layma Aman’s classic glamour. Bianca Kim’s playful (and short) skirts. Emily Cowdrey’s lazy summer. Stefano Lima’s uncompromising edge. Tarahlinda Sanders’ casual seascape. Alesha Pettit’s Socialist rainbow. Krystle Li’s Greek goddesses. Natalie Minori’s Easter parade of silks and satins. Danielle Romero’s streamlined sophistication. James Kubota’s Seven Samurai synthesis. Jewelry designer Lisa's unorthodox accessories.
The student-designers were evaluated based on a six-point criterion by a group of judges representing a mix of academia, fashion, and retail viewpoints. Judges were asked to rate how well the collections conveyed the designers' original concept, the construction and fit of the garments, the relevance of the runway music selection accompanying the presentation, and the collections' ability to be received by the retail industry.
In the end, Tarahlinda Sanders won the third place prize of $300 while Danielle Romero took second place and $500.
But it was second-semester fashion student Mark Eric Garcia Rodriguez’s collection of daring, dark silhouettes that won the day and a prize of $800.
“[The judges] felt his collection had a clear direction and was executed well,” said Asfour. “It was high fashion but still saleable and elegant.”
Rodriguez says he was focused from the beginning on creating a rounded, complete presentation of a line meant to convey the strength of modern women in a traditionally male-dominated infrastructure. The result of this inspiration were garments that despite their salience (or maybe because of it) exuded elegance and sophistication.
"I was focused on creating a good, round, complete presentation," said Rodriguez, who studies business, dance, and music at University of the Pacific. He admitted he was initially hesitant about entering the fashion program at Delta, because of its small size and its distance from a truly metropolitan area. He enrolled after an exhibition of the program piqued his interest, and is now grateful to the Delta instructors and his fellow students for providing the opportunities.
"It's been an enriching experience," he said. "Leslie is a great coach, and Jonathan has become a mentor to me."
Rodriguez said he plans to present a complete collection for Fall 2009, and to enter the design industry after completing the fashion program at Delta and graduating from Pacific.
The third and final chapter of the “Journey” was a fashion sale at Wish List Boutique on Stockton’s Miracle Mile. The sale featured all the designers from the Haggin runway show, and gave customers an opportunity to meet with the designers and purchase their original creations. It was also a way for the student designers to truly test the marketability of their designs and themselves.
“This kind of event can be a reality check for some of the designers,” said Wish List co-owner Cathy Lagorio, who, with co-owner Lindsay Dalonzo, hosted the sale and also served as a judge for the show. “It gives them a chance to receive some interesting feedback, and for finding out who their audience is.”
That’s not to say that to say that the designers should lose heart if their creations weren’t picked up at the sale. Lagorio and Dalonzo pointed out that though only two of the 12 designers offered lines that were market-ready for Wish List, that didn’t mean the other designs wouldn’t be popular with a different group of customers than those loyal to Wish List.
“Every shop has a different demographic,” Lagorio said. While her regular customers might not respond to the works of contest-winner Mark Eric, his designs still thrilled judges and the audience.
“They were dramatic, super-elegant, and had a great attention to detail,” Dalonzo said.