THE BRIGHT young things of Irish fashion displayed their skills with a class act at the graduate fashion show of the National College of Art and Design at the weekend.
The show, produced by Irish designer Ciarán Sweeney, took place at the Irish Museum of Modern Art and was sponsored again by hairdresser Peter Mark.
Helen McAllister, the college’s head of fashion, described the 15 graduates of 2011 as an “eclectic” group with a broad spread of influences, a diverse market focus from high street to haute couture and with a feel for experimental approaches.
Sources of inspiration varied from 1930s America and the circus to fairytales and architecture, with the strong points of the show being fabric manipulation, cut and shaping.
Standout graduate work included the tented, bucket-shaped dresses of Gemma Daly, with their zany black and white hatbox stripes, the vibrant neon taffeta dresses and printed leggings of Aoife Shiels, and the curved layering with adroitly slashed insets of Keelin Cunningham’s pale separates.
The event showcased more than 200 student designs, including second-year student knits, third-year fashion and fourth-year printed and embroidered textiles, proving that there are many more promising talents emerging.
Some of the embroidered textiles, like Honor Scanlon’s fun, colourful “owl” bag motifs and striped duffel bags could go straight into commercial production while Trudy Feighery’s metal hardware, Mohawk helmets and spiky black armour were clever combinations of hard and soft materials.
Laura Gilsenan’s playful way with men’s shirting and mix of polka dots with soft khaki jodhpurs was innovative and assured, while Aoife Conroy’s outstanding pleating and manipulation of silk made for some dramatic modern versions of Victorian silhouettes.
Tailored black jackets sharpened up the soft pleated grey dresses with their portrait collars. Black bowlers added flamboyance.
A concentration on technique was especially evident in Mona Atkinson’s detailing and the beautiful collection of origami-style translucent white dresses with soft folds by Clarisse Walsh, winner of this year’s River Island bursary.