Fashion Arts students at Humber were put through their paces as they created and organized the 2011 Humber College fashion show, Walk It Out: From Dusk to Dawn.
The annual fashion show features top designers, in an event created, organized and put together by graduating second-year Fashion Arts diploma students. In a gala event at Palais Royale in downtown Toronto on April 12, Canadian designers Taessa Chorny, Natalie Good and Todd Lynn had their designs featured.
Everything from setting the theme, to booking the venue, to arranging for the models, to strategizing the timing was done by students. The students began preparing for the show in January, at the start of their fourth and final semester, and worked on the show for the next 12 weeks. Walk It Out also featured beauty by the graduating students from Humber’s Cosmetic Management diploma program and music from students in the Contemporary Music degree program.
“Each of us had a different role, and we had different committees,” said Candice Chiat, one of the students who worked on the show. “We had the PR, advertising, models, styling. So each person had responsibility.”
The course is designed so that students make meaningful contacts in the Toronto fashion industry. For instructor Delphine Nicholls, shows such as these give the students valuable experience.
“I’m really proud of them, because this was genuinely put on by them,” she said. “We had a sold-out crowd, we had people standing, and that’s all because of them. They got to deal with some high-talent designers here; it’s the best kind of experience that they can gain.”
The show ran smoothly, though there were issues behind the scenes before the event, said student Krystle Beaulieu. However, the students were able to resolve all the issues before the spotlights turned on.
“It was a lot of work and lots of obstacles, but we pulled through,” said Beaulieu. “You can think problems might happen, but it’s not until you’re actually doing it and the obstacles come up when you learn. You have to stay calm and just have to find out the best solution, one that suits everyone’s interests.”
She found the work for the show to be tiring, but she is glad that she did it. It is the culmination of everything she learned at Humber.
“The Fashion Arts program at Humber is very broad, which is good,” said Beaulieu, who is interested in cosmetics and retail buying. “It all really ties in during the last semester. It’s a lot of work but you learn a lot. The knowledge you get out of the program is completely worth it.”
