The Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) presented SCAD FASHION 2019, a celebration of original designs curated from the finest SCAD School of Fashion senior and graduate student collections in Atlanta, May 9–10 and Savannah, May 16–18.
As the most anticipated sartorial event of the year, SCAD FASHION redefines the runway. “SCAD’s nearly 4,000 fashion graduates are now design leaders at Anthropologie, Marc Jacob, Kenneth Cole, Kate Spade, Abercrombie, Chanel, Lily Pulitzer, and just about every other major brand,” said SCAD President & Founder, Paula Wallace. “SCAD grads also create new brands like Argent and AUDRA, and I’m just in the A’s! Now Atlanta’s fashionistas can see all this luminosity for themselves at SCAD Atlanta’s first-ever runway show.”
Each year, graduating SCAD School of Fashion students in Atlanta, Hong Kong and Savannah are given the opportunity to have their work expertly critiqued by fashion industry leaders, and the university’s Style Lab mentor program connects them directly with established designers as they complete their final collections. This year’s SCAD Style Lab mentors are Shirley Kurata, Los Angeles-based stylist; SCAD alumna and SCAD40 Prize winner Eleanor Turner (B.F.A., fashion, 2008), fashion designer; Mesrop Megrabyan, innovator designer at Nike; Robert Verdi, celebrity stylist, entrepreneur and television personality; and Frederic Tremblay, accomplished design professional.
SCAD honored CFDA award-winning fashion designer Cynthia Rowley in Atlanta and Phillip Lim in Savannah. After the Étoile presentation, Rowley was in conversation with Kimberly Rabanal, SCAD Professor of Fashion Marketing and Management. Lim was in conversation with journalist Michelle Lee, editor in chief of ALLURE.
SCAD School of Fashion is comprised of degree programs including accessory design, business of beauty and fragrance, fashion, fashion marketing and management, fibers, and jewelry—all disciplines working together to produce all-encompassing creations, reflecting an industry where synergy is key.
The SCAD Étoile honors icons of style and design. Cynthia Rowley and Phillip join previous SCAD Étoile honorees including Derek Lam, Jonathan Adler, Pierre Cardin, Graydon Carter, Linda Fargo, Jason Wu, Carolina Herrera, Margaret Russell, and David Yurman.
SCAD has long been a destination for luminaries across disciplines to connect with emerging talent. Famed fashion designers have attended SCAD fashion events to extend their valuable insights and provide students with real-world critiques. The university provides these visits as opportunities to celebrate remarkable work and unprecedented careers. To date, SCAD has honored fashion industry titans Manolo Blahnik, Derek Lam, Reese Witherspoon, Stephen Burrows, Tom Ford, Diane von Furstenberg, John Galliano, Marc Jacobs, Zac Posen, Miuccia Prada, Oscar de la Renta, Ralph Rucci, Isabel and Ruben Toledo, Vera Wang and Vivienne Westwood.
