VPA seniors showcase creativity, technique in annual capstone fashion show

Thousands of hours and many late nights spent drafting, draping, and designing at Syracuse University’s Nancy Cantor Warehouse culminated in one final celebration of the School of Visual and Performing Arts’ fashion design seniors. 

Usually packed with sleepy students wrapped around the main floor waiting in the Dunkin’ line, the Schine Student Center was transformed into a Fashion Week-esque venue. Friends and family of design students packed in to attend the annual senior fashion show. 

Syracuse’s School of Design hosted its annual Senior Capstone Fashion Show, a celebration for graduating seniors majoring in Fashion Design, on Thursday. The show was held in Goldstein Auditorium, instead of its previous location on the Warehouse’s top floor. Two different showings were offered at 3 PM and 7 PM, free of charge. 

This year’s batch of 26 seniors each presented a six-look collection, showcasing the techniques and skills learned throughout their four years. Each designer spends almost their entire senior year constructing their collection, sourcing their own materials, and carefully selecting each element of their part of the fashion show, including models, accessories, and music.

Senior Toula Rumery said most of her time last semester was spent drafting and developing the collection, from sketching to gathering every material. Since January, she drilled in on sewing and constructing each look. 

“The peacock dress and the black dress with the blue godets, I made both of those over spring break,” Rumery said. 

The curated collections illustrated each senior’s unique personalities and perspectives, from exploring 1950s workwear to childhood books. Senior Amaya Evans presented a streetwear collection set to “The World is Yours” by Nas. Titled “THANK YU NY,” her collection focused on New York City, featuring subway map-inspired leather boots and a teal jacket with a Statue of Liberty design. 

Rumery created a nostalgic world of an eccentric, well-traveled woman throughout her collection, finding inspiration within burlesque attire, interior design, and architectural forms.

“I have experience with costumes,” she said, “So it definitely informs my design process.”

Aptly titled “Birds of a Feather,” her six looks in the collection drew inspiration from different types of birds. The opening look, a grey bodysuit with lace detailing and a textured military jacket with a medallion ribbon, represented an owl. The final look, a ballgown with a deep purple bodice transitioning into an emerald tulle skirt with draped dark green velvet, was inspired by a peacock. 

“We had the owl opening, we had the fluffy chicken, we had the peacock, the penguin,” she said.

The “fluffy chicken” featured a glittery, corseted, sheer mini dress. The model wore a mini tiara and carried an off-white, sparkly feather boa. 

“The peacock look is forever and always in my heart, she said. “But the fluffy chicken was great.”

Several designers focused their collections on a single consistent element to thread each look together. Senior Jack Wagner experimented with denim, creating boxy, heavily pleated pants and a jacket made of deconstructed jeans. 

Senior Sophia Palmo’s collection “Timeless Threads” followed how she could transform different kinds of white lace, such as delicate chantilly and structured guipure. 

Another senior, Sophia Luo, remarked that she modeled for three different designers, changing into three completely different looks throughout the show. She noted the backstage atmosphere being overstimulating, but felt good with how smoothly everything ran. Above all, she was mostly stressed about simply getting down the stairs from the stage. 

“There’s so many people and so much going on, and so many different teams, but it’s really beautiful seeing it all weave together,” she said.  

Luo also said she couldn’t pick a favorite of the three looks she modeled because she loved them all equally, and could find at least one situation where she could wear each one. 

“I can’t just choose one, because I can see how much effort and passion and meaning all of my designers put into it,” she said. 

Fashion Design Professor Todd Conover closed the show by unveiling six awards to the graduating seniors. The awards ranged from recognizing outstanding craftsmanship to excellent exploration of color in a collection. The Elisa Ribatt Award for Outstanding Senior in Fashion Design was presented to Paige Mathes, recognizing her collection “Here in Our Underworld” along with balancing scholarly commitments with consistently producing innovative, thoughtful designs.

The final award honored the most outstanding collection of the group, celebrating the designer whose collection is “conceptually rich and technically accomplished, with a clear narrative carried through silhouette, material, and detail,” said Conover. The award was presented to senior Jada Williams, whose collection titled “Salt, Bone, and Indigo” explored her Creole and indigenous background, through an impressive display of design techniques such as pleating and ruching. 

The graduating class of fashion design seniors will present their collections again this year in New York City at SU’s Lubin House in May.