Are graduate fashion shows really still relevant?

The tectonic plates of the fashion industry have shifted radically over the past five years, the status quo disrupted by see-now-buy-now, the demand for inclusivity, environmentalism, and labor abuse scandals. Graduate fashion shows, those glamorous finales to the hard slog of completing BFA and MFA programs, which are covered enthusiastically by the international fashion press, FashionUnited included, are also falling under new scrutiny. While headlines can propel some lucky graduates into the larger fashion consciousness, they also raise the global profile of the institutions, with some questioning if the shows are more of a status symbol or PR exercise for the school, a glamorous event for wealthy donors to attend. In this age of hyper communication are runway shows the most relevant way to launch the latest student talent?

FashionUnited directed these questions to several leading figures within fashion education: Shelley Fox and JOFF, director and associate director of the Masters of Fashion Design & Society at Parsons, and J.R. Campbell, former director of BA and BFA programs at the Fashion School at Kent State University. The email exchange produced wide-ranging responses which have been categorized by theme. The contrasting characteristics of the two institutions arguably play a part in how their representatives responded, Parsons being a private art and design school situated in the heart of NYC whose MFA runway show appears on the official New York Fashion Week calendar, and Kent State a public university with course offerings across the arts and sciences located in North East Ohio which hosts its annual show in the campus’s custom-built runway space.

On the importance of graduate fashion shows

Campbell: Many in the broader fashion ecosystem often misunderstand the role of a capstone fashion show and/or degree show and assume that it has an industry or designer purpose. At Kent State we made a great deal of effort to help our students and our community understand the construct of the annual fashion show as an important component to their curricular/learning experience as design students who will soon be entering the workforce as designers.

Fox & JOFF: For it to be just perceived as a status symbol or PR exercise is a bit short-sighted – there are many benefits to doing a show especially in context of social media and the global sharing of information. It also helps us to secure scholarships and industry support for our students who aren’t always financially in a very comfortable place. But none of this would exist if it weren’t for our students delivering excellent work and us working effortlessly in the pursuit of that. Within our program we urge our students to question and challenge the system – to be able to do that successfully, it is important that they are knowledgeable of that system they are trying to challenge. The compact format of the runway show also gives us the opportunity to introduce these emerging talents as a sneak preview of what is to come moving forward in the landscape of New York fashion. The show is a great way of showcasing the excellence of our program but it is primarily set in place to support these designers in their careers moving forward. It has proven to work quite successfully.

the program’s showcase definitely ignites the industry to pay attention

On showing during New York Fashion Week

Fox/JOFF: From the program’s perspective the context of New York Fashion Week allows us A) to showcase the large amount of creativity and innovation that is prevalent within this city and B) to re-educate the international audience on the stigma of New York Fashion being largely driven by commercialism. While their identities as designers within the New York Fashion Week graduate show largely fall underneath the umbrella of the program, which isn’t perhaps a showcase of their design identities specifically, debuting these graduate designers within our show has been a huge support for them in launching their own labels. It is fantastic to see graduates like Jahnkoy, Kozaburo, Nihl, Landlord, Claudia Li, Snow Xu Gao, Melitta Baumeister showcase their work within different perhaps more experimental ways – but the program’s showcase definitely ignites the industry to pay attention of what will come next.

On alternatives to showcasing graduate talent:

Fox/JOFF: Since the program’s inception graduate work is showcased three-fold: the exhibition; the graduate show; and a collaboration in printed matter or with a specific media outlet. The exhibition allows the audience to have a close-up view and first-hand experience of the work itself, which often can be lost within a runway show. It involves individual installations of the designers showing their process and developments more in-depth alongside their collections. While open to the public, in many ways it is for the fashion nerds among us – which results in visitors largely consisting of industry headhunters, creative directors, stylists and press. It also allows industry to be in touch with the designers directly and this has resulted often in hires right after the exhibition.

Additionally, we showcase the work within an exclusive editorial setting. Previously this was done through our own MFA Fashion Design & Society publication, but in the last couple of years we have partnered up with 1 Granary Magazine. This is a fantastic opportunity given 1 Granary’s global focus and it is an honor to be included alongside our colleagues and their graduates at Central Saint Martins, Royal College of Art, Academy of Art University, etc. This collaboration has been extremely fruitful in the way that it has taken on different modes of representation, i.e. VOID Exhibition and now an up and coming exhibition showcase during Paris Couture.

Building an effective and innovative portfolio is actually much more important

On the importance of the runway show to students

Campbell: We did a lot of “cultural” work to help students understand that it’s not THE most important part of their student career/experiences, but it is a critically important one. Building an effective and innovative portfolio is actually much more important. So we adjusted the expectations relating to both to help reinforce the thinking. It is still, though, a very important event for students, for their family members, for the faculty who supervise them, and for the alumni and industry partners who support them.

Fox/JOFF: In our experience with our student body it does still hold weight but as directors we are also aware through our own professional experience that other formats could be more relevant for different designers; photography, film, exhibition, performance etc. but all still require a considered approach and high-level execution in order to communicate effectively. One format is not necessarily better than the other, but perhaps one is more relevant for a particular body of work. Many of our graduates use different modes of representation where the runway show is often considered as secondary – or not something to involve themselves in while in the early stages of launching their careers.

On selecting students for the show

Campbell: We created a jurying process in which each student’s collection (or individual garment submissions for underclass-persons) is evaluated for acceptance or rejection from the show. In the case of the BFA, each student gets very direct feedback from a panel of established designers that serves as a basis for them to learn about how their concepts and the execution of their collections are being perceived by experienced designers who are seeing their work with ‘fresh eyes.’ We limit the number of collections that will be accepted for the runway. In fact, if a graduating BFA student does not have any of their work selected for the fashion show, they are subject to not meeting the graduation requirements for attaining the BFA Fashion Design. In this way, as a learning experience, the students gain a deep and emotionally challenging truth about their future; that they need to learn how they will respond to both acceptance and rejection of their design ideas; that as designers they are truly exposed to their audience, customer and their peers; and that receiving and accepting feedback is the only professional way to grow and improve as designers.

Fox/JOFF: Historically, from the MFA perspective we have had anywhere between 9–18 collections presented because in some years some collections didn’t get to go on the runway for various reasons. Collections have been excluded from the runway because they were not where they needed to be in the desired timeframe, but those designers have still gone on to have successful careers because they possess great skillsets, talent and are highly employable. There is also the perception of scheduling around shows––which collections open and close a show. There are often complex reasons behind why collections come in a particular order.

On if there is a correlation between students selected for the show and those who become successful designers

Campbell: Not particularly. It is not uncommon for award-winning students to have the hardest time finding employment, but for the 20+ years that I have been involved directly with student fashion shows, I have not seen a consistent correlation between students who showed well in the fashion shows and their likelihood for meaningful employment. They do however demonstrate continued designer insight and strength that is vital to whatever employment path they engage in.

Fox/JOFF: Firstly we have to ask what is successful for a designer? The link between a student whose collection receives a lot of publicity as opposed to those who receive less publicity doesn’t necessarily indicate success. Of course, publicity is a great support if not crucial in launching their own business. But there are designers who receive a lot of media attention but choose to join a design team in furthering their experience. Often the more quiet and subtle collections can be lost on the runway, but as directors we know how those students work as designers and what their skillsets consist of which can often be extraordinary so we are careful to make sure these designers are seen by industry in other ways. Creative directors in hiring positions are not necessarily judging the final runway shots as hiring material––that’s only part of the story because they want to see how the designer got there, which is why the exhibition and magazines can be very supportive to their work.

On social media and graduate shows

Fox/JOFF: The speed in which collections are shared on social media is polarizing. It can often be challenging for an emerging designer, giving a false sense of security. Everything is very content driven these days and media outlets aren’t necessarily always interested in supporting designers long term but are often largely driven by consistently having to deliver newness to their audience. Today you can be the new hot thing, but tomorrow it will be someone else. It can be hard to navigate that aspect, especially when graduates are trying to figure out whether they do want to start their own business. On the flip side social media has of course also been extremely powerful in changing the hierarchical systems of the industry, allowing young designers access to resources that previously were out of reach, to connect with a creative industry that was largely run by agencies. They can be their own agent now, build their customer fan base and be immediate in the communication of their design identity. For many, this has proven to be extremely supportive in establishing their business. While as a program we utilize the tools of social media and urge our students to do the same, we never lose sight of the fact that whatever they deliver physically within the program needs to be at the highest quality and not something that can only exist on Instagram.

On the educational opportunities of putting on a show

Campbell: In our case, we use the planning, promotion and production of the annual fashion show as a dual-level learning experience for our Fashion Merchandising (and sometimes design) students. The entry level teams help with planning and production and the advanced level teams undertake organized and professional management of the event. The students of the school then become fully responsible for the success of both the show, and how the designers’ work is shown. They also have to learn how to meet the often conflicting parameters set by the director of the Fashion School, and the leadership of the institution who act essentially as “executive producers” for the fashion show management team. The planning and production process starts with a leadership team of nearly 20 students within weeks of the completion of the annual show in April. In Fall, 50–70 more students join the planning/production team to help execute the vision for the upcoming event.

It creates both a platform and an opportunity to engage deeply with potential donors, companies and industry leaders who help, sponsor and/or attend the show. This cultivation process (shared between the faculty leadership and the student management team) helps our students understand possible means/mechanisms for fundraising for other professional venues in their future.

Fashion editor Jackie Mallon is also an educator and author of Silk for the Feed Dogs, a novel set in the international fashion industry.

Header photos Parsons MFA, Monica Feudi; Kent State University runway and Parsons MFA exhibition photos, FashionUnited