Columbia is certainly not known for being a bastion of great fashion. Except for those few daring exceptions, this campus has its fair share of sweatpants—particularly during finals season, and when the weather is as awful as it was this week.
In search of something different (and looking for a more creative way to procrastinate), Weekend guru Olivia Aylmer and I headed downtown for the Fashion Institute of Technology’s annual graduates’ collection runway show.
For the BFA candidates, the end-of-the-year presentation is the equivalent of a thesis defense here at Columbia: They’ve spent their entire college careers gearing up for this show, where their designs will be judged by fashion design luminaries like Calvin Klein and Diane von Furstenberg, as well as industry insiders like Fern Mallis, the creator of New York Fashion Week.
And these students did not disappoint. I couldn’t help but feel a little sheepish about a semester of hastily-put-together essays as I watched their creations walk the catwalk.
From the absolutely stunning red carpet fare to the daring and sexy lingerie, these young designers proved judge and Daily Beast columnist Kate Betts right: “These are the future Donna, Calvin, and Ralphs.”
