L.A. Fashion Week Fall '05: FIDM
The alumni association of the Fashion Institute of Design & Merchandising presented the “Emerging Artists Unveiled” runway show on March 18 at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week at Smashbox Studios in Culver City.
The show, conceived by FIDM Director of Alumni Relations Nathalie Holtzman, was the culmination of a national competition in which 14 designers were selected from 30 applicants. The 14 finalists were then judged by a group of fashion notables, including Amanda Luttrell Garrigus, editor-at-large of Angeleno magazine; Karo Vartanian, costume supervisor for “Desperate Housewives”; Kevan Hall, designer and FIDM alumnus; Bobbie Thomas, television host and style editor; and Mary Stephens, chairperson of fashion design at FIDM. The final six designers were chosen for their creativity and for the quality, construction and cohesiveness of their lines.
“We support the alumni foundation in any way that we can,” said Tonian Hohberg, FIDM founder and president. “The whole alumni association was behind this.”
The design school held a similar show during the inaugural San Francisco Fashion Week last year, and Hohberg said the school plans to make the fashion show an annual event.
Urban Geisha by Luna Sardone, from design team Shannon Figgins and Elias Luna, combined clean, practical urban pieces with Japanese details such as obi-style belts, tassels and embroidery.
Kam Hollis showed a fresh and girly yet sophisticated line of tops, skirts and dresses in a palette of yellow, brown and blue.
Bad Pixie by Jenny Pyle included edgy ’80s bikinis, sportswear separates and dresses in a solid palette accented with neon brights and spattered paint details. Pyle had formerly designed for lingerie line J’aime, created by actress Jaime Pressly, who walked the runway in one of the designer’s sexy creations.
Dena Burton’s collection included sexy faux-suede, fur and leather vests, jackets and jumpsuits in chocolate tones mixed with simple tops and pants in cream. A sexy keyhole-front faux-snakeskin dress with fur trim completed her collection.
Emily Francisco turned out a polished and pretty line of dresses, tops, belted jackets and pants made in silk shantung, lace and traditional Filipino pina cloth. The collection featured exquisite embroidery on jackets and cutout details on skirts and dresses.
Ranging from funky to elegant, Jennifer Blue’s collection included ensembles such as a red knit sweater with elongated sleeves paired with gray wool trousers, a gray wool coat with a matching pleated skirt and fur Cossack-style hat, and a glamorous scarlet glass-bead and paillette gown. —N. Jayne Seward
