Degree Type
Honors Capstone Project
Date of Submission
Spring 5-1-2008
Capstone Advisor
Jeffery Mayer
Honors Reader
Karen Bakke
Capstone Major
Design
Capstone College
Visual and Performing Arts
Audio/Visual Component
no
Capstone Prize Winner
no
Won Capstone Funding
no
Honors Categories
Creative
Subject Categories
Art and Design | Fashion Design
Abstract
The final year in the life of a fashion design major atSyracuseUniversityis a test of everything they have learned in their time here. Each member of the program knows this challenge lies ahead, and prepares for it. But in 2007-2008, the program made a large change that threw a curveball at the senior class. The seniors were presented with three different assignments to complete.
Having been given multiple sets of criteria to stimulate our thought processes, coming up with something concrete that I was going to be able to work with seemed an easy task. Indeed the first two projects went well, and the results were quite pleasing to me and my colleagues. This creativity did not last all the way through the year and the third collection proved to be the biggest trial of the three.
The third set of criteria which was to inspire a collection was an interesting one. Hashing together bits and pieces of Ralph Lauren, a fashion designer with 40 years under his belt, and Edie Biel, the late eccentric socialite with a very eclectic fashion sense may seem like a reach, but upon further research they weren’t quite as far apart as they initially seemed. Each person re-interpreted 1940’s fashion in their own unique way. Even with all this stimulation, designing two complete collections had taken it’s toll and the third did not seem to be going anywhere.
After finally establishing what direction this collection was going, it was time to narrow my research. A particularly inspirational piece was a pair of shoes with a stacked glass heel fashioned from the windshield of an inactive airplane. This prime example of ‘make do and mend’ brought together the whole concept of the collection.
While military themed collections are as old as fashion design itself, there are infinite ways to interpret this look. One of the most prominent parts of a military inspired collection is the colors. Military costumes are also easily identified by their incredibly tailored structure, and their substantial lapel styling. Medals and buttons decorate many military dress uniforms, and I took this as inspiration as well. The challenge then became to create a military and vintage inspired collection without making the audience feel like it was seeing the same old tired military and oldHollywoodclichés which walk down so many runways each year.
Recommended Citation
Stuff, Elizabeth M., "Fallschirm" (2008). Renée Crown University Honors Thesis Projects - All. 515.
https://surface.syr.edu/honors_capstone/515
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