Unique designs tantalize the senses at the SCAD Fashion and Accessory Design Static Show

A dress is not an outfit until you add accessories. The perfect ensemble requires carefully curated accessories that have the potential to completely change the look and feel of a garment. Savannah accessory design students showcased their work alongside selected pieces by fashion students at the Fashion and Accessory Design Static Show at SCAD’s May Poetter Gallery in Savannah.

The static show opening reception on Thursday, May 17 was part of the first day of activities celebrating the second annual SCAD FASHWKND. The much anticipated event takes place over four days in Savannah and Atlanta and highlights original designs curated from the finest SCAD School of Fashion senior and graduate student collections.

Students gathered inside the gallery to enjoy refreshments and appreciate their peers’ hard work. The exhibition gave attendees exclusive close-up looks at exceptional garments and accessories. As students walked around the gallery, the overall sentiment was appreciation for the uniqueness of each piece. Second-year Savannah fashion marketing and management student Madison Davis enjoyed seeing each of the students’ personalities come through in their designs. “Everything looks really unique and you can really see their styles,” she said.

Adding to the uniqueness of each design was the overall décor. In true SCAD fashion, the exhibition space was expertly decorated. The crowning centerpiece was a life-size tree with a cloud-like top made of lightbulbs. The cloud rained SCAD tags attached to strings with handwritten messages from students on the back. The lightbulb rain cloud was reminiscent of the storms that afternoon that had begun to clear. Green turf floors further gave the space an indoor-outdoor feel.

A few designs surrounded the center tree with most of the pieces lining the perimeter in a square, allowing guests to leisurely stroll by each piece. On the back wall of the gallery, video footage of last year’s runway show played in a loop on a giant projection screen.

Materials took center stage, from fluffy tulle and decadent fur to see-through mesh and acrylic. The textures, fabrics and materials begged you to reach out and touch them, tantalizing both the senses of sight and touch at once.

Collaboration was another common theme throughout the show, not only between the fashion and accessory design students, but with industrial design students as well — producing visually stunning pieces with unique materials and shapes.

Accessory design student Vivian Sredni collaborated with industrial design and design management student Maximiliano Acevedo to produce a bootie that appeared to be stuck in a chunk of ice. Accessory design student Margarita Leano collaborated with industrial design student Esmerly Sime to create a romantic, nude bootie with silk beaded flowers complete with a translucent, wavy block heel.

The collaborations among multiple majors made the designs and show a special experience for students. First-year Savannah fashion marketing and management student Molly Johnson found strength in the one-of-a-kind designs. “I find it empowering how everything is so unique and off the wall and [seeing] that you can be successful making unique things. Nothing in here is basic,” she said.

The show gave students something to look forward to and work towards. After seeing the show, first-year Savannah fashion student Hailey Kavanagh knows she has big shoes to fill, but she is up to the challenge. “I think it’s really inspirational to be able to see all of this and know that this is going to be me in a few years,” she said.

The Fashion and Accessory Design Static Show will be on display throughout SCAD FASHWKND. The exhibition is free and open to the public and a great way to see top students’ designs up close and personal.

For more information on all of the upcoming events at SCAD’s FASHWKND, visit their site here.