From today Irenebrination will publish a series of Q&As with the San Francisco's Academy of Arts University students who showcased their collections during the latest New York Fashion Week. Enjoy!
New York Fashion Week is usually packed with unmissable appointments for the fashion critics and the buyers, but one of the most exciting events remains the showcase of the School of Fashion at San Francisco's Academy of Art University. Ten designers from the school presented their creations during the latest edition of the Mercedez-Benz Fashion Week event, showcasing seven womenswear collections and two collaborations - one between fashion and knitwear design students, and another between fashion, textile and jewellery design students.
Presenting their creations at Lincoln Center during New York Fashion Week is obviously an incredible opportunity for the students involved, but for the school it is a tangible proof of its efforts to build a solid identity with a positive reputation. The School of Fashion at Academy of Art University has been showcasing its talents in New York since 2005, receiving the attention of the media and excellent reviews from major fashion publications.
One of the reasons behind the success of the Academy, the nation's largest accredited private art and design university currently boasting around 18,000 registered students, is the high rate of international students adding their own backgrounds and experiences to San Francisco's vibrant cultural pluralism.
Anatomy, art and film were just some of the themes students showcasing their collections at the latest edition of New York Fashion Week played with in their designs.
Janine M. Villa moved from vintage Welsh blankets and, inspired also by school uniforms and tailored menswear, she kept her silhouettes pretty simple and clean. Villa teamed up with Amanda Nervig who applied her knitwear knowledge in the sweaters and accessories included in the collection. The result was an elegantly casual series of designs, with functional pieces including wool blanket coats, shirtdresses and vests.
Can you tell us more about your backgrounds?
Amanda Nervig: I was born in Des Moines, Iowa, and got my BFA in Fiber Arts from the Kansas City Art Institute in 2004. I am still living in Oakland and going to AAU. This is my last semester and I am working on my collection for Spring.
Janine M. Villa: I grew up on the Jersey Shore (it's a lot nicer than the TV show...) and moved to Boston to study graphic design at Boston University. The program was very fine arts intensive and allowed a lot of room for creative growth. After school, I worked in the Boston area for a couple of years as a designer at a small advertising agency. I realized pretty quickly that I felt restricted creatively working in that kind of setting, so I started looking for a change to get back to my fine arts roots. I always had a strong interest in fashion, and started looking for ways to break into the industry. It became apparent that I would have to return to school, so, after some research, I decided to enroll in the MFA program at AAU. I'm currently based in Oakland, CA.
What's the most important thing you learnt from your years at AAU?
Amanda Nervig: It's hard to nail down one particular thing that I've learned, but I feel like my skill set has become much stronger and well-rounded. It has been a huge period of growth for me because I have had the opportunity to devote all of my time for 3 years on cultivating ideas and becoming a stronger designer.
Janine M. Villa: While it is important to take in criticisms, I think it is crucial to stick to your gut and follow your intuition. There are no wrongs or rights when dealing with creativity. If you force yourself into someone else's box, it will show every time. Have a little faith in yourself and your point of view. Aside from that, be prepared to hustle every single day. This industry is not for the weak of heart. It takes a lot of long hours, hard work, and determination.
Who has been the greatest influence on your career choices?
Amanda Nervig: Probably my mother because she taught me how to knit. I would definitely not be doing this if she hadn't gotten me started!
Janine M. Villa: While at the Academy, Sean Moore, the graduate director, has really been an influential figure for me. He has helped guiding me to where I am today, which is showing at Mercedes Benz Fashion Week. I can't really thank him enough for that. Interning in NYC with Rebecca Minkoff was a huge turning point for me too. It was really inspiring to see a young woman growing her business and making it happen.
Is there an artist/designer who inspires you in your work?
Amanda Nervig: There is really nobody specific who inspires my work as a whole. I get really into different artists and designers for a while and eventually move on to something else. Right now I've been looking a lot at Jean-Léon Gérôme, Lawrence Alma-Tadema and Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres' paintings. There is a richness and narrative quality to their work that I find interesting.
Janine M. Villa: There are several designers who I kind of set as benchmarks for myself. I find looking at others' work a helpful tool for fine tuning my own aesthetic. I love Stella McCartney, Karen Walker, Consuelo Castiglioni of Marni, and Dries Van Noten.
Can you tell us more about your creative process?
Amanda Nervig: For me it's all about hard work - if you put in the time and effort it takes to get things right, everything usually works out ok.
Janine M. Villa: There's no real formula, but it always starts with a lot of rough 2D sketching. I look for inspiration from a variety of sources - painters, photographers, street style, people watching, architecture, history, and so on. Sometimes it's a particular color palette that catches my eye, other times it may be a certain shape or proportion. From there I just let it snowball into a large cache of ideas and then begin to edit down. I like to work a lot with color and pattern, so I will often pull fabrics into the mix early in the process and let them speak to me as to what they want to do.
How did you feel at showcasing your collection at the Academy of the Arts fashion show?
Amanda Nervig: It was really fun. It was great seeing it all come together!
Janine M. Villa: It was incredibly overwhelming, but in a good way. The process leading up to the show is so rigorous and routine, day in and out. I worked so hard during that time to keep my emotions in check and just keep working towards the end goal. You know, just keep plugging away, one day at a time. It almost seemed like there is no end in sight. Then you leave for NYC, and all of a sudden the day is finally there. I couldn't even watch my girls going down the runway, I had to turn away because I couldn't keep myself from crying. It was just such an incredible moment to see something you've worked so hard on, for so many months, realized in the exact way you wanted it.
What inspired your graduate collection?
Janine M. Villa: I wanted the collection to be an overall representation of who I am as a designer and what I would want out of my own line. I looked to things that often inform my designs - menswear, tailoring, color and pattern. I also spent my whole life in a parochial school uniform and, fight it as I may, it always finds a way of sneaking into my designs. The Welsh blankets were really the big catalyst in this collection. I fell in love with their vibrant colors and designs that felt so modern even though they are all 50-60 years old. That mix of modernity with tradition is often a reoccurring theme in my work. I wanted the blankets to be the focus of the collection, and built a complementary fabric story around them.
Amanda, can you tell us more about the process behind your knits and your choice of stitches?
Amanda Nervig: All of the pieces are hand-knit in acrylic and wool and I did some knitting with shredded plastic bags and spray-painted metal washers. We settled on some basic shapes, stitches and proportions for the accessories early on, but, beyond that, I just started knitting and designed as I went along. It was a really fun project to work on.
Did you find any stages of your collaboration difficult or challenging?
Amanda Nervig: Absolutely not. Janine and I didn't know each other prior to this, but we have similar tastes and work ethics, so aside from the general stress of meeting deadlines, we had an easy time working together.
Janine M. Villa: Never. It was so seamless. We had a real time crunch, though. I think Amanda only had 6 weeks or so to execute everything, but she is so efficient and had a clear vision, so things worked out. The school did a great job pairing the two of us up.
What you up to now – working or continuing your studies?
Amanda Nervig: I'm at AAU for another semester working on my graduate collection. My plan is to finish up school, find a job in the knitwear world and hopefully show my collection at the New York show in September.
Janine M. Villa: I am back in the Bay Area weighing my options for work. I love this area and would love to stay here, but employment options are limited. I am not excluding the idea of starting out on my own here in San Francisco, but I am exploring options back in NYC as well. We'll see where the future take me.
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