Latest news with #AllisonMargaretSmith
Fibre2Fashion
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Fibre2Fashion
US' FIT hosts 2025 Future of Fashion Runway Show
The Fashion Institute of Technology (FIT) showcased the exceptional creativity of its students at the annual Future of Fashion runway show presented by Macy's, held on the college's campus in New York city. The event featured visionary and innovative looks made by a select group of graduating students from FIT's Fashion Design BFA programme. The 2025 Future of Fashion runway show—featuring 82 designs—celebrated the work of 67 students. The looks were inspired by personal stories and anecdotes that addressed themes such as sustainability, technology, cultural heritage, and more. The five concentrations include knitwear, sportswear, intimate apparel, children's wear, and special occasion. The Fashion Institute of Technology's 2025 Future of Fashion runway show, sponsored by Macy's, showcased 82 innovative designs by 67 BFA students, highlighting themes like sustainability and cultural heritage across five fashion concentrations. Award winners included Khoboso Nale and Allison Margaret Smith, with 13 students receiving critic honours. "For four years, our graduating designers have honed their skills and refined the tools they needed to best channel their creativity – and we are able to witness first hand the results of those efforts," said FIT president Joyce F Brown . "At FIT, our graduating BFA students do not just turn in final exams, they craft beautiful designs that come to life on the runway, right before our eyes. Each year, the Future of Fashion show gives budding designers a unique opportunity to demonstrate for the world what they can achieve when their passion and training are synchronised and jointly applied." The runway looks were selected by a group of distinguished judges, including FIT alumnus Joe Ando-Hirsh, fashion designer and actor; Kevin Bass, senior associate of programmes and fashion calendar at the Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA); Edmundo Castillo, fashion accessories designer; Hollis L'Estrange Daniels, design director, Macy's; Vanessa Friedman, fashion director and chief fashion critic, The New York Times; Kelly Geib, account executive, Avalon Apparel; Phillip Lim, fashion designer and creative director; FIT alumna Rebecca Moses, international fashion designer and author; and Dr. Valerie Steele, director and chief curator of The Museum at FIT (MFIT). For the fourth consecutive year, Macy's was the lead sponsor of the show. Through Macy's social purpose platform, Mission Every One, the brand recognised the outstanding skills of graduates with two awards, uplifting and empowering the next generation of designers, trendsetters, and retailers through its Future of Style Fund (FoSF). The Macy's Capsule Collection winner, Khoboso Nale, will gain real-world experience by working alongside Macy's executive mentors at retail and manufacturing locations. The collaboration will culminate in the production and sale of Nate's collection under Macy's private label BAR III, available at the Macy's Herald Square flagship and select stores nationwide. The Macy's Empowered Design Award, which honours a student who powerfully conveys their inspiration through a final design, was awarded to Allison Margaret Smith. "This spring, Macy's is proud to partner with FIT and the Future of Fashion runway show to empower young designers through Mission Every One," said Emily Erusha-Hilleque, senior vice president of private brands for Macy's . "The creativity and dedication on display at last night's runway show illustrate our commitment to empower the next generation of designers." "The continued support from Macy's exemplifies the industry influence on and investment in new talent," said dean of FIT's School of Art and Design Troy Richards . "Our students benefit from the mentorship and opportunities that Macy's provides, enriching the fashion design curriculum at FIT." In preparation for the runway show, students collaborated with leading designers who served as critics throughout the spring semester, offering expert insight across the five areas of concentration. Thirteen students were honoured as critic award winners and recognised with distinction during the runway show. The 2025 recipients are Alexandra Dayton (sportswear), Evelyn Hernandez (sportswear), Leyi Huang (special occasion), Lauryn Ilasco (knitwear), Hannah Kisilevich (intimate apparel), Paris Liu (knitwear), Leah Robinson (children's wear), Allison Margaret-Smith (sportswear), Yuval Sorotzkin (special occasion), Burak Turp (sportswear), Yuxiang (Peter) Xiong (sportswear), Xiangyu Yang (sportswear), and Geonhyung Yu (sportswear). Fibre2Fashion News Desk (RR)
Vogue
12-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Vogue
Fashion Institute of Technology Fall 2025 Ready-to-Wear Collection
Sixty-seven members of the Fashion Institute of Technology's graduating class presented 82 looks in five categories—sportswear, children's wear, knitwear, intimate apparel, and special occasion wear—at the Future of Fashion show. The event was sponsored by Macy's, which will also put into production the designs of a number of students they selected. Over the past few years, students at design schools around the globe have been engaged with a progressive agenda. The work of this class was notably tamer in terms of palette and silhouette, and with no obvious explorations of gender. In fact, the manosphere was nowhere present—which can be partly explained by the fact that menswear at the school is only offered as an associate degree and is not included in the BA show. That's not to say that students shied away from topical subjects, (more on that to come), but as Troy Richards, dean of the School of Art and Design shared, 'what I feel like I've experienced this year was an almost overcorrection from some of the progressive politics that we were advancing.' Concurrently, in the aftermath of the pandemic, the dean has noticed that the students have 'reengaged with material…we've seen a rapid improvement in their hand skills and an interest in a variety of textures, of materials, of structure.' All of these qualities were present in the work of Allison Margaret Smith (looks 1 and 3), who kicked off the show with pieces made using raffia, straw, jute, and balsa wood, from a collection that she hoped would 'connect with the vast landscapes of America and pay tribute to the resources this land has provided for all its inhabitants.' Photographs of Pittsburgh's evolution from the Carnegie Museum of Art's Photography Collection were the starting point for Austin Marshalek's knitwear (looks 52 and 53), while Nathaniel Samuel's Belle Epoch-ish opera coat (look 80) was designed as a 'love letter' to New York. Roots and family continued to motivate students like Evelyn Hernandez (look 6) from Mexico who dreamed up a leg shawl, and Jegu Kim who presented a pretty and poufy ensemble that reinterpreted elements of traditional Korean attire (look 18). Jennifer Sze, the daughter of a stone mason, referenced her father's tools and materials in a sculptural pleated ensemble in shades of blue (look 60). Amanda McVey considered 'the traditions of the Scottish diaspora' by hand-shaving a plaid pattern into a shearling topper (look 26); Leyi Huang borrowed from 'religious practices of ancient Tibet' (looks 75/76) for her evening looks; and Bilegbayar Senegedorj was 'inspired by the shamanic traditions of the Mongolian steppe' (look 19). Borrowing from the tale of 'Şahmeran,' about 'the mystical and transformative power of the serpent,' Servan Bilici transformed a traditional jacket and pants into something delicate and unexpected (look 23).
