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Academy of Art University 2017 Graduation Fashion Show

Academy of Art University 2017 Graduation Fashion Show | May 6, 2017 | San Francisco, CA | Photos by Randy Brooke, Getty Images

Sarah Mower, chief critic for Vogue, was the honoree on May 6 when the Academy of Art University in San Francisco hosted its 2017 Graduation Fashion Show.

Dr. Elisa Stephens, AAU president, presented an honorary doctorate degree to Mower, who is the ambassador for emerging talent for the British Fashion Council and a co-chair of the BFC NEWGEN scholarship committee.

The May 6 runway show featured several collaborations between students in different fields of study.

Fashion design graduate Thao Thai worked with jewelry and metal arts graduate Naz Khorram on a collection that combined Thai’s minimalist, deconstructed pieces with Khorram’s metal-wire jewelry, which outlined the body.

Fashion design student Amy Hsu Tzu Chen worked with knitwear design student Xiaowen (Wendy) Zhang to create a collection that merged Chen’s complex fabric textures with Zhang’s highly textured knitwear made from unconventional materials such as packaging material, raffia and paper yarn. Chen is next headed to Paris to participate in the San Francisco–Paris Sister City Scholarship Exchange at L’Ecole de la Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne.

Fashion design student Jessica V. Wijaya and costume design student Clarkie Kabler collaborated on their brightly colored collection. Wijaya was inspired by the portraits of photographer Wes Naman to create the asymmetrical silhouettes, which feature beading details Wijaya created in collaboration with Kabler. Wijaya was selected to participate in the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) Fashion Future Graduate Showcase Curated Exhibition and the San Francisco–Paris Sister City Scholarship Exchange at L’Ecole de la Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne in Paris.

Fashion design student Jeanne Marie Sanguinetti worked with jewelry and metal-arts student Ryan Hsiang for Sanguinetti’s collection inspired by the 1980s arcade game Pac-Man. Sanguinetti and Hsiang created the LED lights and 3-D-printed elements featured in the collection, and Hsiang designed the headphones in the shape of Pac-Man characters.

Fashion design student Aastha Shah and textile design student Peggy Kuo worked together to create a collection that mixed traditional Indian silhouettes with Westernized street style all in colorful silkscreen-printed textiles designed by Peggy Kuo, who drew on traditional Hindi Madhubani paintings, Mendhi Henna drawings and the bright colors of India’s Holi Festival. Shah was selected to participate in the CFDA Fashion Future Graduate Showcase Curated Exhibition.

Fashion design student Amanda Velasquez and knitwear design student Shanice Ashley Green collaborated to create a collection that combined Velasquez’s clean, tailored looks with Green’s knits, which were inspired by jellyfish tentacles and featured a plated knitting technique using silk rayon yarns. Velasquez received the YMA-FSF Geoffrey Beene National Scholarship and was selected to participate in the CFDA Fashion Future Graduate Showcase Curated Exhibition. She next heads to Paris to study at Studio Berçot through the San Francisco–Paris Sister City Scholarship.

Fashion design student Alvin Ang and textile design student Christina Miyagi collaborated on their collection, which featured layered ensembles of tailored pieces that mixed complex patterns and seam details to provide pops of color. Ang was selected for the CFDA Fashion Future Graduate Digital Showcase. His work will appear on CFDA’s website (cfda.com). Miyagi was selected to participate in the CFDA Fashion Future Graduate Showcase Curated Exhibition in May.

Fashion design student Jane Wade was inspired by San Francisco’s electric cables, streets and bridges to create her collection, which featured cord-bonding textiles and leather cording.

Menswear design student Julie Kintner worked with textile design student Yan Li to create a menswear line featuring exaggerated shapes, detailed textures and pops of bright yellow.

Fashion design student Brandi Puckett was inspired by the art and life of Salvador Dali to create her collection, which channeled surrealism with circular shapes, textures and prints. Puckett’s work will appear in the CFDA Fashion Future Graduate Showcase Curated Exhibition later this month in New York.

Fashion design student Ann Zhang drew inspiration from fusion knots and the drawings of Glenn Brown to create the abstract shapes and knotted shapes featured in her collection. Zhang is a 2017 CFDA Kenneth Cole Footwear Innovation finalist.

Fashion design student Vivian Cho was inspired by Japanese “biker-girl gang culture” for her collection of layered looks accented with top-stitched judo-belt strap details.

Fashion design student Estene Marquez drew inspiration from the architecture and history of Antoni Gaudí’s La Sagrada Família in Barcelona for her collection, which mixed fluid organza with tailored silhouettes. Marquez was selected for the CFDA Fashion Future Graduate Digital Showcase. Her work will be on display at CFDA.com.

Fashion design student Dagny Steindorsdottir found inspiration in the circuit boards and electric cables found in electronic devices. She used electric cables to create patterns and structural accents. Steindorsdottir’s work will appear in the CFDA Fashion Future Graduate Showcase Curated Exhibition in May.

Fashion design student Erika Tompkins, a Portland, Ore., native, was inspired by her home city for her collection, in which the molds of old garments were used to create new ones, many altered further with a coating of silicone. Tompkins is a 2017 CFDA Kenneth Cole Footwear Innovation Finalist, and her work will appear on CFDA’s website as part of the CFDA Fashion Future Graduate Digital Showcase.

Fashion design student Bowen Tian explored scale in a collection featuring voluminous puffer garments with oversized buttons and trim. Bowen was chosen to participate in the CFDA Fashion Future Graduate Showcase.

Fashion design student Jiran Xia worked with jewelry and metal-arts student Pei-Ling (Ann) Tsai on a collection that featured Xia’s geometric silhouettes and floral prints and Tsai’s acrylic and metal jewelry. Xia received the Surtex International Student Design Competition: designext and will participate in the CFDA Fashion Future Graduate Showcase Curated Exhibition.

Fashion design student Laura Hidaka was inspired by her birthplace, Honolulu, for her collection, which explored the traditional Hawaiian kahiko hula skirts, as well as prints and appliqués based on Henri Matisse cutouts and his “Blue Nudes.” Fashion design students Claudia Tan and Virginia Yue did the embroidery and weaving for the collection. Hidaka is participating in the CFDA Fashion Future Graduate Showcase Curated Exhibition in May.

Fashion design student Joanna Jadallah took inspiration from her Palestinian heritage to create a menswear collection that adds fluid drape and texture to “nomadic” menswear. Jadallah worked with jewelry and metal-arts student Qin (Samantha) Xu and knitwear design student Cana Klebanoff to create ethnic-inspired jewelry, including an ear cuff made from horn beads and metal wire. Additional beading and embroidery for the collection were done by Klebanoff and apparel design student Jeanniffer Tirtamarta. Klebanoff also created the knits used in Jadallah’s collection, which were inspired by Japanese samurai armor and the architecture of castles. Klebanoff received the San Francisco–Paris Sister City Scholarship Exchange to study at Studio Berçot in Paris.