Fashion
Forward

In the competitive fashion industry, it's easy to overlook the talent fashion design students hold. However, students at Columbia College Chicago have immense potential in their creative fields, and deserve to be recognized. Here, we highlight three fashion design students, who each created a mini collection this semester specifically for FRANK magazine.

Photographer + Art Direction:  Damianus Lamont    Writer:  Emma Jackson    Design:  Nick Rissmeyer

"Each collection
is different, and
each collection
is special"

Estefania

Dalla

Estefanía Galvan, a senior fashion design major and marketing minor, created five pieces for this collection showcasing different silhouettes. Galvan is from Manizales, Colombia, and wanted to reflect on who she is and what her country represents by using a variety of colors, light fabrics and subtle designs. “That’s who I am and I was inspired by my country, Colombia, which is very rich in biodiversity,” Galvan says. Her collection includes a long sleeve top, a sleeveless top, an asymmetrical skirt, palazzo pants and a dress.

Galvan says she didn’t expect to end up at Columbia. She originally went to business school, then moved to the U.S. to study English, and ended up in Chicago studying fashion. She says she always wanted to have her own business someday and she plans to use her fashion degree to create her own brand.

She says what keeps her going is how versatile her designs are. Although Galvan's main focus is women's wear, she has also designed men's, children's, and gender neutral collections. “Each collection is different, and each collection is special,” Galvan says. “I gather inspiration from many things so I think the fact that I can play around all the time is what makes me motivated.”

Galvan's design process differs for each of her creations. She says she usually begins by researching places, problems or something she is curious about, then does her sketches, gathers information and fabrics before putting it all together. Sometimes, however, her process is the complete opposite when she sees a fabric that she really likes or designs her own prints followed by drawing her sketches and then the final garment.

Amaranta

Estefania created five pieces for this collection, with the intention of being able to have a wide variety ands how different silhouettes. She says she wanted to reflect on who she is by using a lot of colors, light fabrics and subtle designs. "That who I am and I was inspired by my country basically because Columbia is a country that is very rich in biodiversity and that's what my garments represent," Estefania says. Her collection includes a sleeve top, a sleeveless top, a skirt, pants and a dress.

Flor de jade

Estefania created five pieces for this collection, with the intention of being able to have a wide variety ands how different silhouettes. She says she wanted to reflect on who she is by using a lot of colors, light fabrics and subtle designs. "That who I am and I was inspired by my country basically because Columbia is a country that is very rich in biodiversity and that's what my garments represent," Estefania says. Her collection includes a sleeve top, a sleeveless top, a skirt, pants and a dress.

Le Derniere Robe

Bichoy Boutros, a sophomore majoring in fashion design from Alexandria, Egypt, finds inspiration for his designs by taking a story and turning it into an outfit.

For this mini collection, he used a story about a princess as his inspiration. The girl in the story had her heart broken and runs away with only the clothes she is wearing. Boutros describes the character as being a badass with an attitude, living on her own as a runaway. The collection consists of three dresses that show off the soft and rebellious sides of her.

The first design (left) is a black, two piece dress with a cape outer layer. When she takes off the cape and hood, the chiffon dress is revealed with slits and a leather harness.

Gawhara

The next design is a burgundy ball gown with a double circle skirt and train. Boutros describes the skirt as classic, but the top has a sex element to it. “It ties back to the original story of this [rebellious] royal person who ran away and is now living in this abandoned place,” Boutros says. “It breaks the rules of ball gowns by showing off a lot of skin.”

"“There’s a conception that to empower women they have to wear a men’s suit or blazer. I don’t think that’s the case,”

Bichoy

Eugenie

The final piece is a purple, full length dress. Its mermaid skirt makes it look like a ballgown, but when she turns to the side, its transparency gives a sexier vibe.

Boutros says he really enjoys making pieces that empower women. “There’s a conception that to empower women they have to wear a men’s suit or blazer. I don’t think that’s the case,” Boutros says. “I think that to empower women, you can just make them a piece that makes them feel sexy and beautiful so they feel very powerful and confident in what they’re wearing.”

Stella

Hannah Lee Jackson, a senior studying fashion design from Catlettsburg, KY, created three looks representing a contemporary and casual style. Her first look is a bubble jacket paired with a skirt. She played with the shape of the jacket and stretched the boundaries of what a bubble jacket is to make it a contemporary and fun outdoor look.

Kelly

The second outfit is a textile-oriented jumper with a knit sweatshirt underneath. She made the jumper to be textile oriented and played around with the placement of the fabric within the garment.

Aubrey

Her final look is leggings and a bustier that she describes as fun, flirty and playful, making the person wearing it feel free and expressive.

Jackson says she was inspired by different textiles like stripes and bright colors. She chose saturated and bright hues that she says we will see in spring 2020.

Jackson spent three years in undergrad studying studio art before transferring to Columbia for fashion design. She describes being a student at Columbia as diverse, creative and challenging. "It's challenging in that it forces you to get out of your comfort zone and use your creative process to create something unique," Jackson says. "It's really opened me up to design and has allowed me to create more authentically."

She says she loves to design but thinks construction is where she really shines. Her design process begins with an inspiration point usually coming from nature and organic forms. She also uses concepts that she previously explored in fine arts to help her flesh out her designs, and says much of her inspiration stems from her studio art background. Some of the concepts that have helped her create her most genuine designs are fear, loneliness and compassion.