Maine College of Art & Design Announces The MECA&D 2021 Fashion Show
Thesis Collections from Textile & Fashion Design Seniors Will Be Presented via Livestream from the Institute of Contemporary Art at MECA&D on Friday May 7th
Portland, Maine — Maine College of Art & Design (MECA&D) is pleased to announce that The MECA&D 2021 Fashion Show will take place Friday, May 7, 2021, at 7:30 pm via livestream to an international audience from the Institute of Contemporary Art at Maine College of Art & Design.
“MECA&D’s annual Fashion Show is both a highlight of our year and the culmination of our Textile & Fashion Design majors’ academic experience,” said President Laura Freid. “The work of our Textile & Fashion Design students is conceptually and technically outstanding and the collections are fresh, intriguing, and groundbreaking. These students are truly shaping our future, inviting change and reflection, and joy at the same time.”
Textile & Fashion Design students at MECA&D investigate the intersection of cloth and the human experience through a balanced study of textile and apparel fundamentals. Students create garments, functional objects, or works of art that affect those who interact with them. The Textile & Fashion Design program emphasizes engaged making that considers a broad and inclusive view of history, sustainability, engagement, and citizenship while utilizing both traditional and digital tools to actively solve problems.
“As a companion to the yearly BFA Thesis Exhibition, The MECA&D Fashion Show provides an opportunity for students to show work beyond the gallery. Students in the Textile & Fashion Design program at MECA&D learn to create fabrics from the ground up and build works of art both on and off the body.” shared Alysha Kupferer, Chair and Assistant Professor in Textile & Fashion Design. “Textile & Fashion Design students at MECA&D are driven to make a difference through the work they create. This year's juniors and seniors chose to actively engage the communicative potential of textiles, and every collection features custom textile and surface applications such as textile prints, hand knits, machine knits, dye work, weaving, laser cutting, applique, hand pleating, and hand beading. Through their collections, these resilient students respond to the current moment by pushing back with joy.”
The Friday May 7th runway event will take place in MECA&D’s Institute of Contemporary Art galleries and will be livestreamed to an online audience. More information and event sign up instructions can be found here. A donation at any level will unlock entry to the livestream event. Donations provide critical support for MECA&D’s Student Scholarship Fund.
The MECA&D 2021 Fashion Show is sponsored by Trane, Harvard Pilgrim Healthcare, Wipfli, Wright-Ryan, People’s United Bank, Coffee By Design, USI Insurance Services, Northland, Trane, The Hanover Insurance Group, Northern Benefits and MAL(function), Maine Magazine, Plant Office, and Headlight AudioVisual. The event is also supported by MECA&D faculty member Jill McGowan and Sodexo.
The Textile & Fashion Design Program at MECA&D was created in 2013 through the generous support of Maine-based philanthropist Roxanne Quimby.
For more information, see www.meca.edu/info-for/advancement/the-fashion-show/