DIT Alfa Romeo Fashion Show 2010
Below you can read press releases, watch videos and find out more about the Student Design Award.
Winning Design
Student designer Emmy Slattery, from Malahide, Co. Dublin, won the award for a design called ‘Metallic Knights’, which was worn by Suzi McAdam, from Castletroy County Limerick. Emmy said the inspiration for her design – a black plastic dress, which is worn over grey leather trousers - came from images of French heroine Joan of Arc and her medieval armour.The National College of Art and Design (NCAD) student received a cash prize of €2,000 and a specially commissioned bronze ‘Zipper’ trophy by Monaghan born artist Jason Crowley.
Around 1,000 fashion enthusiasts attended the sell out show, which had a Rock Revolution theme. The popular annual show, now in its seventh year, is organised by 70 students from DIT. Proceeds go to the DIT Foundation, in particular the Student Assistance Fund, which supports students who are in severe financial difficulty with the aim of ensuring that they remain on in college and complete their studies.
Student Design Award 2010
Emmy Slattery of NCAD was the winner of this year’s Student Design Award. She received an original piece of bronze sculpture specially created for the DIT Alfa Romeo Fashion Show 2010. The Student Design Award was sponsored by DIT Foundation who commissioned Dublin based sculptor and DIT graduate Jason Crowley to create the piece.
As a DIT graduate himself, Jason Crowley was thrilled to be asked to create the award. According to Jason, his work was inspired by the theme for this year’s show, ‘Rock Revolution’. "With this in mind I was drawn to the idea of black leather and biker culture, looking to the biker jacket for inspiration, I decided to use the “zipper” as the model on which to extract an arrangement for the award’s design. The zipper was appropriate for a couple of reasons. Firstly, as a sculptor/metal finisher it appealed to me simply for its metallic nature and formal arrangement. In addition, I felt it was appropriate simply due to its prevalent use throughout the fashion industry,” he said.
Press Release
One of the biggest and most exciting events on the DIT calendar, the DIT Fashion Show takes place in Vicar Street on Wednesday 24th March. All proceeds raised from this year’s show will go to the DIT Foundation, in particular to the Student Assistance Fund, which helps students who are in financial difficulty to complete their studies. Leading car manufacturer Alfa Romeo was recently unveiled as the title sponsor for the event. The show, which has a “Rock Revolution” theme, is now in its seventh year and is run entirely by students from DIT.
According to Rachel Lenny, co-director for the show, “We’re very keen to support the DIT Foundation - our chosen charity this year – who will use the money raised to help our fellow students who may have fallen on tough financial times. We can certainly promise a top line up of fashion, music, dance, drama and fun that will rock the house in Vicar Street and the rehearsals are well underway. We are also absolutely thrilled to welcome a designer brand like Alfa Romeo onboard as title sponsor. The whole process of finding the right sponsor has been a valuable learning curve for our business & marketing team and it was a real case of putting the theory into practice and it worked!
Over 70 students from DIT are involved in the running of the show, of which 41 have been recruited as models – 18 men and 23 women. The importance of healthy eating and exercise for everyone involved, especially the models, has been a big part of the induction programme this year. DIT Fashion Society is just one of 80 student societies in DIT. Over 6,000 students are members of these societies, the core principle of which is about participation and student interaction for a better third level experience while putting the emphasis on practical education for DIT students.
Speaking at the launch of this year’s show, Jim Kelly, CEO, DIT Foundation, said “I am delighted that the organisers have chosen the DIT Foundation as their charity this year. In the current economic downturn I think everything should be done to assist students who are experiencing financial hardship. We hope to raise as much money as we can from this event and all the proceeds will be funnelled into the ‘Student Assistance Fund’. The DIT Fashion Show is perfect example of how students can work together to produce a first-class event that showcases their skills.”
The DIT Foundation is also sponsoring this year’s Student Design Award for the best designer. According to Jim Kelly, “DIT Foundation is proud to be presenting the Student Design Award and we are really looking forward to the show. The talent and creativity of the designs produced by the eight finalists are all of remarkably high calibre and I’m sure the judges will have a difficult job selecting the overall winner.”
Looking forward to the show, Tara O’Leary of Alfa Romeo said, “This sponsorship is a great match for Alfa Romeo and we are very impressed by the energy, style and business know-how oozing from these students. The DIT Alfa Romeo Fashion Show really demonstrates how the students, sponsor and the wider fashion family can come together to create something special that celebrates Irish fashion and motoring style and gives us all a little lift.”
Tickets for the DIT Alfa Romeo Fashion Show cost 20 euro for students and 25 euro for non students and are available from DIT Student Union shop and from Tickets.ie
