Student runways spotlight the Zietgeist, hint at ideas likely to shape future fashion. Tickets sell fast, fashionistocrats think they’re the best thing about fashion weeks. Do you agree? Voxfrock Rookies Carlin Stephenson (photographer) and Kaya Martin (journalist) report from MFW’s thrill-filled student show just for you. Click back for our last day of MFW updates by the 2022 Voxfrock Rookie crew of future fashion photographers and journalists.
Words: Kaya Martin Photographs: Carlin Stephenson
There’s a buzz in the air even the pelting rain can’t diminish. Packed into the foyer of the Meat Market are friends, family and fans, chattering and clutching dripping umbrellas.
For the 40 fashion students taking part in the Student Collections Runway, it’s a big night: a celebration of the end of a few unusual years of study, and a chance to leave their mark.
It’s a sold out show. The square stage has been designed to look like a sewing pattern, and as the lights dim, four white-clad models take their places behind machines. It’s a clever centerpiece, and a nod to the many hours of labour behind the scenes.
The event showcases collections by students from the Box Hill, Holmesglen, Kangan, RMIT and Whitehouse institutes of fashion and design. And they didn’t come to play.
We see a mis-mash of themes and techniques: deconstructed utilitarian, floaty tulle, quilting, crochet, metal work.
And it’s hard to forget the massive, sculptural silhouettes which had all iPhone cameras pointed in their direction. “This year is the year for volume,” says Peter Ly, an RMIT fashion grad who participated in last year’s event.
He tells me it’s a joy to see the showcase return in full-force after the pandemic. “Coming back, I just feel so alive,” says Peter. “Everyone was keeping in, and now [there’s] this burst of creativity and all of this energy coming out all at once.”
Perhaps all those years of masking up did have an influence, as the amount of face coverings on the runway was notable, from balaclavas to droopy hats and extra-long turtlenecks.
Another running theme was sustainability. Beer caps became chainmail, recycled military parachutes were draped into flowing jackets. Deadstock fabric scraps and other ethical materials reigned supreme, showing this class of designers is considering how their work will impact the world around them.
Whitehouse’s Amy Cottrell (above, and main photo, top) took home the coveted MFW Student Award for her Plasticity collection. Futuristic and feminine, it was crafted from an edible, biodegradable plastic she developed for the project.
“I spent quite a few months experimenting with different recipes and quantities to create the bio material,” she tells me, “also using natural dyes to add the colour, such as spinach and berries.
Wild, wonderful and well-intentioned, it’s clear this won’t be the last we’ll see of this class of 2022.
