Search

2023 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Youna Jin. Presented on September 12, 2023 at 'Uni/Versal: Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design, Born in Korea, Youna Jin is a ready-to-wear designer whose work focuses on the intersection between gender norms, the body, and the blurred lines of unisex fashion. Originally trained in jewelry design and metalworks, Jin uses progressive pattern cutting and traditional technical fabrics to organically highlight controversial parts of the human body in order to question the sexual and social gaze of the public., About this Collection: The thesis question for my collection “Soft Discomfort” is: How can we make fashion more equitable without imposing fixed gender? The biological and social constructs of gender and the body influence the construction and silhouette of garments. The term “unisex” emerged to combat gender norms. While “unisex” was used in the women’s liberation movement to advance sexual freedom, it frequently takes on the structure of making women masculine and men feminine. This tendency perpetuates fixed gender images rather than promoting individual body image.

2023 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Anthony Oyer. Presented on September 12, 2023 at 'Uni/Versal: Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design, Inspired by two worlds—fantasy and history—Anthony Oyer merges past with present through silhouettes taken from historical references and fantastical stories. His is a viewpoint formed while growing up in a small Midwestern town, watching old films and exploring antique stores. Oyer’s deepest desire is to make his wearer smile. His muse is one who wears their finest to the grocery store and diamonds while taking a bath. His universe is a place where more is always welcomed., About this Collection: Clothing is the costume with which we shield ourselves from the outside world as we slip into the different characters of our lives. For his thesis collection entitled “Regina,” clothing as armor is a central theme. Anthony explores the wardrobes of his favorite women throughout history and how they personified their values through their garments. Corsetry represents the armor we wear for the everyday, draping the fluidity of our personas, and embellishments the true nature of one’s inner self.

2023 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Xinyue Maggie Tao. Presented on September 12, 2023 at 'Uni/Versal: Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design, Tao’s intention is to delve into the depths of human nature, philosophy, and the realm of material existence through her artistic creations. Her collections transcend the limitations of time and culture. They unfold captivating narratives, fueled by an exaggerated and dramatic storytelling style that ignites her creative inspiration. These collections often exist in a world untethered by time, untouched by the constraints of reality. Her distinctive essence resonates within each meticulously crafted collection she presents., About this Collection: The “Carnival of Apocalypse'' collection examines an individual’s philosophical decay during global turmoil. I divided these into five chapters focusing on a wild woman who faces the end of the world with a “You only live once” and “Make the most of it” philosophy. Explored through couture techniques, the eveningwear looks focus on people’s reaction to this phenomenon through metaphoric textiles and colors. Some choose to start anew, others practice impulse control, and some lean toward hedonism. In the end, these calculations become irrelevant and innate nature takes over.

2023 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Yitong Liu. Presented on September 12, 2023 at 'Uni/Versal: Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design, Yitong Liu is a ready-to-wear fashion designer whose style is inspired by her passions for athletics, nature, and social causes. With a professional background in free diving, she brings a deep appreciation of precision to her fashion work, whether in designs, craftsmanship, cuts, or performance-driven textiles that she applies to traditional suiting. Ultimately, Liu's goal is to create garments that not only functionally express a new take on active living but also capture the emotional implications of the times within which we live., About this Collection: “The Urban Diver” is a collection that aims to design hybrid garments that blur the lines between formal and athletic wear while catering to the needs of free divers with robust social lives. Asymmetric patterns inspired by the ocean and water currents mixed with tailored suiting styles to express the beauty of diving as an experience but also serve to bridge the gap between functionality and luxury. This collection is Liu’s love letter to freediving and fashion, merging athleticism and luxury with ocean-inspired designs.

2023 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Zining Luna Ye. Presented on September 12, 2023 at 'Uni/Versal: Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design, Chinese-born, New York–based Zining Ye is a designer who strives to create a fashion language that juxtaposes chaos with tranquility and maximalism with restraint. Form and textile manipulation are central to her work. Traditional silhouettes are fused with architectonic textiles, and neutral palettes combine with rigid volumes to create collections that are quietly striking. During her studies in FIT’s Fashion Design MFA program, Ye found a balance between traditional Asian culture and modern expression., About this Collection: In Asian culture, restraint is a central theme. I began my collection from my curiosity about my grandmother's generation and the social-cultural constructs of her era. Despite external suppression of individualism during that era, internal expression and freedom persisted. My collection “Fancy Inside” seeks to represent the friction between internal and external worlds by playing with the juxtaposition of fluidity and rigidity in form and textile and mixing traditional Eastern crafts with modern materials.

2023 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Yimeng Zhao. Presented on September 12, 2023 at 'Uni/Versal: Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design, Born in Beijing, Yimeng Zhao is a fashion designer whose work focuses on the purity of line and form. She believes in reducing everything to the essential while investigating geometric constructions. Patternmaking and craft in construction are central to her process; form is the basis of her love of design. Zhao also believes fashion can be used as a tool to depict and dissect mental health and social issues. Beyond her studies, Zhao has worked in both Beijing and New York and possesses a comprehensive understanding of both markets., About this Collection: Nationally, one in 40 adults are affected by obsessive-compulsive disorder. My thesis focuses on my experiences with OCD in order to combat its stereotypes. OCD requires me to be a reductionist—daily rituals are key. Inspired by these habits, I systematically converted them into a system of primary shapes that informed my garments’ geometric volumes. In simplifying the relationship between form and cloth, I abstracted body lines to create the foundational silhouettes. My thesis shows that from difficulty can come beauty.

2023 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Kuai Li. Presented on September 12, 2023 at 'Uni/Versal: Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design, Kuai Li is a Chinese-born fashion designer whose work centers on sculptural aesthetics underpinned by her industrial design background. Passionate about exploring bold hues, geometric shapes, and the body's interaction with space, Li treats fashion with an industrial design approach. Her work bends physics, often using tech, performance, and traditional furniture materials to explore architectural forms on the body. In addition to designing garments, for the last several years Li has been creative director of the accessories brand she founded, Baohedu., About this Collection: “Independent Reality” is a collection that uses clothing as sculpture to explore the inner and outer self. Large geometric structures are draped across the body to create an obvious definition of space between the wearer and the world. A mixture of opaque and translucent materials are wrapped around these shapes and molded into body contouring silhouettes that both canvas and define the body beneath the cloth to further emphasize the concept of hidden and revealed.

2023 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Morgan Cardwell. Presented on September 12, 2023 at 'Uni/Versal: Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design, North Carolina-born Morgan Cardwell received her BFA from North Carolina State University before pursuing an MFA in Fashion Design from FIT. Her biophilic designs convey a symbiosis between human existence and the natural world, influencing patterns and textures. Her signatures include fluid contours and detailed craft created through a combination of traditional techniques and new technology. Her work centers around the vast range of human emotions, states of interconnectedness and the intensity of lived experiences., About this Collection: Morgan Cardwell’s “Lamella” explores the intrinsic connection between humans and the natural world as expressed through fractal patterns, natural imagery, and topographic textiles. Taking inspiration from the forms and patterns of fungi, flora, fluidity, and land contours, this collection seeks to explore what makes us human: our emotions. Empathy, awe, and curiosity act as a lens to view our interconnection with the world around us.

2023 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Deborah Won. Presented on September 12, 2023 at 'Uni/Versal: Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design, Deborah Won is an award-winning designer who creates work that is influenced by sensory play. By utilizing innovation-driven techniques and materials, she makes concept-forward clothes that promote interaction in personal and shared space. Influenced by movement, technology, and feminine paradigms, her work is a cross section of classical forms with progressive design details that blur the line between past and future. Converse, Opening Ceremony, and Sandy Liang are among the brands she has worked for in her materials and women’s wear design career., About this Collection: “Arise” is a statement on how our collective lifestyles will change in the future. The premise behind the garments is that humans will visit environments outside of Earth’s atmosphere and therefore clothing must be designed to enhance movement in zero gravity. Aesthetic and constructional details are inspired by kites, the oldest manmade aerial device. Blossoming embellishments embody the floating nature of zero-G flight indicators. Variable-opacity fabrics and feminine-focused silhouettes combine to make ethereal fashion for the new frontier.

2023 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Kaylie Haueisen. Presented on September 12, 2023 at 'Uni/Versal: Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design, As a creative designer who is drawn to caustic and audacious subject matter, Haueisen’s work utilizes off-kilter elements, namely deconstruction of traditional patterns and garments, to distort the body in pleasing ways. She deeply enjoys reworking and upcycling existing traditional garments and accessories to create innovative shapes that compliment the body’s natural form and cause the viewer to question toxic views of femininity and masculinity that are pervasive in society., About this Collection: “GREEDY DIRTIE BISEXUAL” is a narrative of my confidence as a bisexual woman who believes in the power of sexual liberation. The purpose of the collection is to show the female form in the most ambiguous and bold way through genitalia-inspired drapes and reworked garments to represent that women can be both sexually aggressive and respected. Bisexuals are framed as greedy for being attracted to more than one gender and I’m here to say, ”What about it?”

2023 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Catherine Ziyue Tang. Presented on September 12, 2023 at 'Uni/Versal: Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design, Catherine Tang is a New York–based women’s wear designer whose work deals with sustainable fashion and wabi-sabi style using bold patterns. Born in China and raised by a mother from the Dong minority, much of her inspiration is rooted in the Dong cultural heritage and traditional craft. Her work aims to fuse these traditions with modern ready-to-wear by exploring how sustainable practices and forward patternmaking can combine with folk craft., About this Collection: "The Song of Samsara" collection is a tribute to rebirth and the cyclicity of all life. Inspired by a personal experience witnessing a giant flower butterfly at her grandmother's funeral, the garments are a symbol of transformation and new beginnings. The legend of people turning into butterflies and appearing at their funerals is the inspiration behind the intricate patterns, cuts, and transparent fabrics—representing the endless possibilities of samsara.

2023 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Lilach Porges. Presented on September 12, 2023 at 'Uni/Versal: Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design, Lilach Porges is an Israeli fashion designer with an academic background in architecture. She uses parametric design methods to create textiles and garments. Lilach wishes to combine fashion with technology and to research more sustainable production methods to create the fashion of the future. Her work centers around developing innovative methods for 3D-printed garments with robotic arms, exploring architectonic shapes with the ambition to bring the worlds of science, engineering, and fashion together to empower women., About this Collection: “DRESS_CODE” focuses on the merger between technology and fashion. It combines looks that were 3D printed by a robotic arm with sustainable materials through three methods: random, accurate, and large-scale. Inspired by software engineering, the collection explores the aesthetics of the abilities and limitations of this technology. The thesis research and collection compare traditional methods, such as patternmaking and fabric sewing to 3D printing by hand and by a robot, where software becomes art and is translated into wearable objects.

2023 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Tom Zhendong Wen. Presented on September 12, 2023 at 'Uni/Versal: Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design, Zhendong Wen is a socially conscious designer whose work is informed by the movements of contemporary society. Having lived in several metropolises, Wen possesses a unique ability to adapt to diverse cultural environments. This exposure has enabled him to identify and capture social patterns in his creative work, which often reflect his observations. His designs are a testament to his keen eye for capturing the spirit of his surroundings and the people who inhabit them., About this Collection: "Metamorphosis" delves into the evolution of technology in the past 30 years and its influence on social interactions in public and private spaces. The collection aims to examine the transformations that individuals undergo and the diverse manifestations that arise as a result. Through this exploration, the collection seeks to inspire reflection on the profound changes technology has brought about and the implications on our society.

2023 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Vasundhra Dhamija. Presented on September 12, 2023 at 'Uni/Versal: Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design, Dhamija is a multidisciplinary designer and 3D artist who bridges the worlds of technology, art, and nature. With a background in computer engineering and fashion, Dhamija aims to design visual stories that are beautiful and thought-provoking and are centered around the cacophonic splendor of mathematics. Born and raised in India, she is passionate about preserving the country's rich cultural heritage and bringing its handicrafts into the modern era by fusing these traditional art forms with innovative tools like Clo3D., About this Collection: “Torus” is a collection exploring the shape of energy fields and the construction of toroidal forms in real life. Taking inspiration from sacred geometry, mathematics, and wireframes, it is a study in realizing a cornerless field of perfect circles that are created and absorbed by themselves using repetition in the patternmaking process. It is a visual experiment depicting the sacred in aesthetics through an illusion of perfection, which is the closest we will ever get to anything truly sacred.

2023 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Valeria Watson. Presented on September 12, 2023 at 'Uni/Versal: Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design, Valeria Watson is a multidisciplinary artist and fashion designer based in New York City. She designs and constructs expressive, colorful, and playful garments that celebrate the bodies that carry them. Inspired by her Mexican-American heritage, her concepts are rooted in personal memories and are imbued with the traditional craft of Mexico. Collaged silhouettes, bold volumes, upcycled materials, and graphical prints are key characteristics that define her work and create collections that invite all to join in the celebration., About this Collection: Mexico and the United States have a long history of population migration over a shared border leading to a rich cross-cultural blend of cultures. This collection, “Sabor a mí, Sabor a tí,” explores my own multicultural heritage as half-American and half-Mexican. Through hand weaving and digital prints plucked from childhood photographs, I used this collection to tell my family’s migration history between the two countries and to record the stories that have been passed down through generations.

2022 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Johanna Luisa Orlowski. Presented on June 8, 2022 at 'Unbound: Fashion Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design., Johanna's designs are rooted in a sustainable approach, which is the most prominent and recurring element of her work. With sustainability as the leading compass of her creations, she also plays with the notion of being an immigrant. She finds inspiration in the past to create very personal and unique pieces by using discarded fabrics and garments that she transforms into new unisex pieces of clothing. Layering is a technique she often incorporates and interprets in a variety of ways. In this collection the pieces are interchangeable. There are no set outfits or rules on how to wear them., Johanna Luisa Orlowski was born in Germany and raised in Ukraine. She moved to Berlin in her 20s where she became highly skilled at tailoring and decided to study fashion design in order to develop her craft. After working for a few years she decided it was the right time for graduate school. Currently, she is both finishing her M.A. in Berlin with Hussein Chalayan as her supervising professor and her M.F.A. at FIT in New York where she resides with her husband.

2022 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Yuning Gong. Presented on June 8, 2022 at 'Unbound: Fashion Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design., Mimicking the trajectory of tragic hero stories, I decided to write a tale with garments to document my six-year journey in fashion. Recognizing the comical absurdity of this journey, ¿Dusk /Dawn? aims to celebrate both virtues and flaws within, and to make peace with such conflict for growth and development. This collection is highly personal and plays a crucial role in her transformation from a student to a designer., Yuning Gong is a women's ready-to-wear designer currently based in New York. Her work is always inspired by a combination of literature, stand-up comedy, cult movies, contemporary art, rock music and architecture. She works by draping around the body and constantly playing with unconventional fabric and color combinations to provoke senses. Believing fashion should be not just clothing but also experiences and lifestyle, Yuning persistently strives to make interactive, interdisciplinary and immersive collections.

2022 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Stephanie Kim. Presented on June 8, 2022 at 'Unbound: Fashion Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design., Stephanie Kim's graduate collection "Sapiomatica" is based on the fictional story of a young heroine living in a distant dystopian future. The heroine's life is closely intertwined with machines. She lives amongst toxic waste in an unforgiving industrial landscape. The garments of this collection contain industrial pipes sewn into the seams. Acid-treated radio frequency shielding fabrics, rubber and plastic form the basis of many pieces in the collection. The film that accompanies the collection explores the heroine's escape from her factory job as she emancipates herself from the inhumane servitude on the factory floor and runs towards freedom., Stephanie Kim is a Korean-American multidisciplinary artist and award-winning designer. She studied visual communication at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and received her MFA at the Fashion Institute of Technology, studying fashion and costume design. She is a two-time Cannes Young Lion winner for her graphic design works, and her fashion design works have been recognized by the CFDA. Her most recent film, a collaboration with Taylor Ervin, recently premiered at the Berlin Sci-Fi Film Festival.

2022 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Sean Patrick. Presented on June 8, 2022 at 'Unbound: Fashion Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design., Marie-Louise O'Murphy was a young, Irish mistress who lived in the palace of Versailles. Far from her humble Irish beginnings, she lived in the center of femininity and luxury during the Rococo era. The Allegory of Femme depicts O'Murphy's story as a metaphor for Sean Patrick's own journey as a young man who grew up in an Irish household with feminine, dramatic taste. Once believing that the conservative traditions of Ireland had no place in the glamorous aesthetics he was interested in, The Allegory of Femme sees these contrasting influences intertwine to create a beautiful and sensual display of Gaelic art., Sean Patrick is an Irish-American designer based in New York City. Through fashion, Sean illustrates escapist feminine fantasies, curated through a queer lens. Merging hyper-feminine aesthetics with Celtic motifs, Sean integrates his cultural heritage with a glamorous vision of femininity. Before pursuing his master's degree at the Fashion Institute of Technology, Sean earned his bachelor of fine arts degree in fashion design at Columbia College in Chicago. Sean has shared his eclectic taste and refined craftsmanship with New York based brands Mirror Palais, 3.1 Phillip Lim, Bach Mai, and JQN.

2022 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Yunjiao (Ciea) Mao. Presented on June 8, 2022 at 'Unbound: Fashion Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design., "I cannot say that my dreams and reality are entirely separate. They are intertwined. Dreams are a kind of subconscious. They reflect our subconscious cognition of things during the daytime. Scenes of our dreams may also appear in our real lives as a kind of prediction. With the passage of time, this dreamland seems to become a part of my memory. As more time passes, I sometimes can't tell if something that happened was a dream or something that I actually experienced.", The collection is inspired by the cultural dilemmas that I have experienced living in Eastern and Western societies. Going back to personal roots, I use folds, layers and dimensional fabrications to find beauty under the more veiled expression of Eastern culture. It's a journey of self-discovery to explore two aspects, nature and people, and to understand the harmony of them. It's free and restrained, strong but soft. It aims to empower women with its oversized silhouette and create an emotional resonance through a surge of power in a static state.

2022 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Sarah Maazouz. Presented on June 8, 2022 at 'Unbound: Fashion Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design., "THE OBSERVER" serves as a reflection of the value of physical presence within modern culture. Garments are constructed as extensions of the body where physical form is used to disrupt patterns of routine interaction and provoke an "awakening" of the wearer. The collection materializes light and color phenomenon through lace, pleating techniques, and diffraction gratings; ultimately expanding the presence of the physical body's boundary into the environment in which it exists. At what point do we stop blindly existing? Or is this a reality we accept?, With a practice rooted in exploration and experimentation, Sarah Maazouz uses scientific phenomena as a vehicle to enhance human perception and challenge the limits of physical form. Maazouz holds a Bachelor of Science Degree in Chemistry from the University of Notre Dame, and works at the intersection of fundamental science and human experience to bring her garments to life. Throughout both process and outcome, she aims to trigger a spirit of curiosity and inquisition. Maazouz was honored as a 2021 CFDA Geoffrey Beene Finalist and a 2022 Bob Fisch Scholar.

2022 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Shumeng Zhang. Presented on June 8, 2022 at 'Unbound: Fashion Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design., This collection represents our experience with clothes as the second skin and the contrast between masculinity and femininity. It is inspired by Martha Graham's "Lamentation" and the New York dance floor. The collection combines menswear and womenswear elements in a distorted way, by mixing ruffles and bold colors with tailored jackets, shirts, and menswear fabrics. It aims to question gender stereotypes. With stretchable fabrics, the wearer's body is restricted but is still free to move, showing the conflict that a dressed body faces., Shumeng Zhang was born and raised in Shanghai, China. She moved to New York and graduated from New York University, earning a Bachelor of Arts degree in interdisciplinary studies focusing on marketing, fashion business and art history. Shumeng interned at XUZHI and Bode which led to her interests in craftsmanship and sustainability. She intends to create avant-garde and unconventional designs. Her work is influenced by art history and gender studies. Shumeng's thesis collection was inspired by dancing and club culture, exploring the relationship between fashion and body and the symbolic meanings behind garments.

2022 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Zhendong (Samson) Jiang. Presented on June 8, 2022 at 'Unbound: Fashion Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design., Forty years after deconstruction shocked the world, the coronavirus pandemic, ethnic barriers, and wars tore us apart. People are getting confused, as if the impulse is still in their heart but cannot find the direction. Such a "Sentiment Dilemma" unintentionally reveals reconstruction. It has the same form as deconstruction but in the opposite direction. Not to show the rifts, but to hide and heal. By adding wrinkles, folds, and silk organza, the boundaries of the deconstructed clothes are blurred and a state of coexistence is created. Hidden in the folds of jackets and dresses to indicate a process of reconstruction, fabric flowers bloom and try to heal the broken garments and soften the rough structures., Born in China, Samson Jiang studied fashion design in New York and Florence. Beginning with the simple idea of expressing people's feelings through clothes, Samson Jiang focuses on the contradictions of human feelings and how the effects of fabrics relate to those sentiments. Samson's designs transform feelings into a calm philosophy of life with poetic design language. It is sensitive, fragile, balanced and intimate.

2022 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Diala Dabbous. Presented on June 8, 2022 at 'Unbound: Fashion Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design., The body, the physical structure that forms a human being, the structure that the fashion designer in me admires. The body is my inspiration, from the inside to the outside. It should be considered along with its movement, its imperfections and its existence. As a focus of my practice, I contemplate the body. I went on a journey of investigating the human form, looking at different ways of perception and coming up with my own. I studied classic anatomy, the dissection of a body and its kinetics. I admire the fit of clothes on a certain figure. I've always questioned how clothes can comfortably sit on the body, move with it and garnish it, giving it its utmost capabilities and enhancing them without necessarily restricting the physique., Texas-born with Lebanese origins, Diala Dabbous spent her childhood and teenage years traveling back and forth between America & Lebanon. Throughout her graduate studies at the Fashion Institute of Technology, Diala developed an experimental attitude toward design focusing on the human form and what it means to her. Dabbous constantly seeks to discover new methods and techniques – pushing their typical limits to create a holistic design identity. Although her work has revolved mostly around menswear, she keeps an open mind and enthusiasm to address new challenges.

2022 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Bethany Plymale. Presented on June 8, 2022 at 'Unbound: Fashion Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design., "Reflection" is the study of mother-daughter generations, the dynamic relationship between mother and daughter and how it affects fashion. From a young age my mother projected her tainted idea of beauty and insecurities onto my sister and me, in an effort to protect us from the patriarchy lies of what women should be. Inevitably my sister and I felt subjected to the male gaze, sexualized, and developed unrealistic expectations of daily dressing. Through my thesis, I dissect my mother, our relationship, and the insecurities of dress and body that were formed – breaking the cycle of generational shame with me., Bethany Plymale designs body and age-inclusive New York streetwear with black as the predominant color in all collections. Raised in the traditional South, Bethany's mother has been instrumental in her development into womanhood and how perceptions of fashion, beauty, and dress came to be. Her designs deconstruct the construction of women in domestic society and norms of beauty imposed onto women at a young age – showing curiosity about the relationship of body, form and cultural norms.

2022 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Ana Jablinski. Presented on June 8, 2022 at 'Unbound: Fashion Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design., Inspired by Margaret Mee's and Carl Friedrich von Martius' respective journeys to the Amazon Rainforest in Brazil, Ana Jablinski imagined discovering an old, abandoned greenhouse hidden in the middle of the rainforest today. This fantasy awoke Ana's nostalgia for her home country's diverse flora and unique architecture. Terra Incognita is a collection that highlights Brazilian craftsmanship and sustainability in fashion through classic and contemporary silhouettes., Ana Jablinski was born and raised in Curitiba, Brazil. After obtaining her bachelor's degree in fashion design and working for small Brazilian brands locally, she relocated to San Francisco as a designer for the bridal startup, Anomalie. Working closely with lace reinvigorated Ana's love for an art form she grew up appreciating on childhood trips to Santa Catarina, watching local women knit a distinct form of lace entirely by hand. In New York, Ana has worked for threeASFOUR and Proenza Schouler and earned her Master of Fine Arts in fashion design at the Fashion Institute of Technology.

2022 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Shine He Sang. Presented on June 8, 2022 at 'Unbound: Fashion Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design., In some areas, especially Asia, gender rates at birth could hit 300 boys for every 100 girls illustrating the most severe situation of baby girl gendercide. The collection reveals systematic gender inequality in multiple aspects ranging from basic birth and living rights to societal engagement and to self-realization rights. To present these issues, the looks focus on computer-aided silhouette design and patternmaking as well as colorful fabric prints that are developed from hand painting. Hand pleats and beads are used to add textural sensation to the collection, while 3D color printed hardware brings in more depth of detail. The collection is realized with special thanks to sponsors Mimaki and Swarovski., Raised in Beijing China, Shine He Sang combines architecture with fashion in her designs. Prior to earning her MFA at FIT, she studied fashion at Parsons, and holds a graduate degree in architecture design from Columbia University. Her work integrates digital approach with craft methods from 2D to 3D to address societal issues, especially feminism topics. She seeks an ideal Tomorrowland free of gender bias. During her study in the program, she received the Mimaki 2021 Innovation Award and was a finalist for the 2021 Geoffrey Beene Design Masters Scholar Award.

2022 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Yu-Hsuan (Stephanie) Chen. Presented on June 8, 2022 at 'Unbound: Fashion Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design., As designers, we often ask ourselves: Who is your muse? Who is the woman you are designing for? My answer to that question would be "Soft and delicate on the outside. On the inside, she holds passion, and is strong and untouchable. A sophisticated warrior." This collection introduces my definition of women that are seen as soft, gentle, but there is a strength to her personality. I reflect my personal observation onto clothing and fashion – finding a balance in the looks, and generating the idea of harmony in technique, fabrication, soft tailoring and draping around the female form., Yu-Hsuan Chen (preferred name Stephanie) is a Taiwanese-born, New York-based designer focused on luxury, minimal womenswear. She holds a BFA Fashion Design degree from Pratt Institute and is graduating with an MFA Fashion Design degree from Fashion Institute of Technology. Stephanie has worked closely with designers Narciso Rodriguez, Prabal Gurung, Caron Callahan and Asher Levine. Her mother is the first woman who inspired her with the contrast of vulnerability and strength, informing her definition of empowering women.

2022 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Xiaolin (Kristen) Wu. Presented on June 8, 2022 at 'Unbound: Fashion Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design., Kristen Wu's graduate collection explores the fusion between Western and Eastern equestrian culture. In her two years of researching and creating functional and innovative fashion, Kristen draws on her understanding of practical details and explores the evolution of equestrian clothing through time using past, present, and future silhouettes and techniques. She consistently tries to remove and simplify traditional trims, fabrics and shapes without losing the Western and Eastern equestrian elements. Always collecting and absorbing new research to combine with unique functional concepts, her design process creates infinite possibilities for the development of modern womenswear., Kristen Wu is a Chinese designer. She earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts in fashion design at the Academy of Art University, and is completing her Master of Fine Arts in fashion design at Fashion Institute of Technology. She has worked in fashion design at Zero + Maria Cornejo. Kristen is obsessed with functional garments, deconstruction, and world cultures. Her philosophy is that modern clothing should also have functional design. The idea of perfect form and perfect function leads her to a unique design direction. With a longtime personal interest in riding, Kristen's work has a strong equestrian influence.

2022 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Mengyao (Marie) Lin. Presented on June 8, 2022 at 'Unbound: Fashion Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design., This collection is inspired by desserts and sweets. I wanted to find a theme that I enjoyed and that would make people feel joyful. The things around us often impact our emotions. In a depressing and stressful time, dessert is the food that brings happiness and delight to people. My color palette is inspired by the color combinations of candy wrappers and desserts. I use pastel and bright colors and uncommon materials like PVC to make beautiful and unique handcrafted designs. I hope the bright colors and surprising textures make people feel positive and upbeat in disappointing times., Mengyao Lin was raised in Shenzhen, China. She brings eclectic colors, surprising and one-of-a-kind textures, and a three-dimensional sculptural style to her designs. Mengyao brings her lively and cheerfully positive perspective to her creative universe. Among her passions, color selection and combining stand out as strengths. Prior to earning her Fashion Design MFA at Fashion Institute of Technology, Mengyao worked in design roles in ready-to-wear, swimwear, knitwear and accessories in New York, London, and Shenzhen. While working for a brand, her designs were selected to be shown on the runway during New York Fashion Week.

2022 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by He (Irene) Zhu. Presented on June 8, 2022 at 'Unbound: Fashion Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design., Chinese designer He Zhu's philosophy is that "Fashion is a form of fine art." Her collection "cloth: square: white" is a way to experiment with clothing as an extension of the spiritual body. The collection projects the ancient East Asian view of the body into contemporary fashion through light & shadow and geometry. The designs feature white squares in different variations and combinations that change the silhouette on the body, with an aim to create a sustainable lifestyle - a unity between man and universe., He Zhu pursues fashion as a fine art form that also incorporates modern ethos. Once trained as a scientist, Zhu is dedicated to creating a solid theoretical foundation for her design with a precise touch of details. Zhu inherited her grandma's aesthetic taste: the kind of elegance and subtlety that comes from the Chinese scholar-gentry in the early 19th century. With an aim to Introduce a balance of Apollo and Dionysian spirits into her designs, she explores the extension of the body with a sustainable approach – folding, zero waste patterns, collaging – reimagining fashion from linear to spatial, sensorial, and temporal dimensions.

2022 Fashion Design MFA graduate thesis collection created by Matthew Okerayi. Presented on June 8, 2022 at 'Unbound: Fashion Design MFA Showcase.', Department: Fashion Design., Matthew Okerayi's collection leverages fashion to express his personal interests for uniforms, art, culture, and politics in this collection. In embodying the delicate balance between political critique and history, his work takes risks. The back being one of the focal elements of each look because it is the body's greatest canvas. He also reflects on the strong women figures in his lifetime, striving to tell their story of their internalized efforts. Uniform, I believe, binds us; this is my counter-argument which is a privilege to be able to present., Queens native, Matthew Okerayi uses art as an escape from authority. Growing up with traditional standards imposed on him, his designs allow him to escape conformity. Prior to studying fashion design at the Fashion Institute of technology, he obtained his bachelor of fine arts degree in graphic design at SUNY Cortland. Business owner of the brand DBO established in 2017. In addition he was honored as a 2021 CFDA Design for justice Finalist and the Mimaki 2021 innovation award. Matthews' work is a catalyst for what is not known.