One of the amazing gems of Stockton is the Fashion Department at San Joaquin Delta College and its annual Designer Collections Fashion Show called A Story of Fashion.
On Friday evening, May 13th, 13 student and alumni designers will be showing new and original collections at A Story of Fashion 2016. The evening will be a night to remember, bringing together both established and emerging student designers to feature twelve collections on over 100 models, professionally styled by the best hair and makeup teams in the area.
This year’s guest host is Courtney Dempsey from Good Day Sacramento. Courtney has been a long-time supporter of the Fashion Program and its students and loves fashion herself!
The student designers are in the Collection Design and Production class in the Fashion Program at Delta College and have spent 18 weeks sketching original designs, sourcing fabric, and creating garments to fit models impeccably.
Students in the Event Production class produce the show, collaborating with local professional stylists, production professionals, models and talent, as well as sourcing wineries and food vendors for the VIP reception. The class holds casting calls for local model talent, develops press kits and writes releases for media coverage, produces the advertising and marketing campaigns for the event, and coordinates staging, music and decor for the show. Both classes, the Fashion Event Production class and the Collection Design class, are led by Fashion Program Director, Leslie Asfour who says. “The Fashion Program is excited to share another set of talented and innovative design students. They combine an intuitive sense of creativity, utilizing the skills they’ve learned in the classroom to bring their ideas to life.”
The Fashion Program emphasizes creativity and experimentation that combines design with art and business. Students in the Collection Design class combine fine art, couture fashion, and technical design to create original fashion designs, which reflect an understanding of global issues such as sustainability, cultural dress, and design movements.
A Story of Fashion is a full-fledged production show, with runway models, lights and music that rivals any show in San Francisco, Los Angeles or New York and garners the respect of the fashion community, drawing to it such dignitary representation from Gump’s, White Plum, local media personalities, and Sacramento Fashion Week, just to name a few. Melanie Marshall, who teaches graphic arts stated, “Amazing show – I am so impressed by the caliber of work of the students in the program at Delta and the professionalism of this incredible show!”
The shows have attracted over 1000 people at its largest show and tickets quickly sell out! The 2015 show attracted the attention of almost the entire City Council of Stockton, including Mayor Anthony Silva who remarked, “I was extremely impressed. The students produced such an elegant and classy event for the city. Everything was perfect. You have a huge supporter and a fan!”
The show’s venue changes every year, creating a different vibe and ambiance at each location. It’s been held at The Haggin Museum, vacant retail spaces in Lincoln Center and Stonecreek Village, and in the brick courtyard at Delta College, creating event atmospheres from classic to industrial to elegant.
This year, the show is going "back to school" at Delta College’s own Blanchard Gym, a state-of-the-art sports facility that will be transformed into a cool and hip show space, with VIP floor seating, as well as general admission bleacher seating. The gym features three full-size basketball courts and will be transformed into a high-styled space with a massive 70-foot runway! With multiple perspectives, there won’t be a bad seat in the house.
The amount of spectators at the annual runway show has grown throughout the years with increased level interest among members of the fashion community. In its ninth year, the 2016 show will be the largest yet, with an audience of nearly 2000.
This year’s event will also feature an exhibit of garments designed by students in the program for the annual Eco Design Challenge, which charged them with creating designs with unconventional materials that represent sustainability and a respect for the environment.
F & M Bank is one of the major sponsors of the event, along with Legend Cinematography, Port of Stockton, Exclusive DJ, Dorfman Pacific, White Plum Apparel, Goodstock (The Stockmarket), Nipote Wines, Three Little Birds, Weibel Vineyards, Sygma Network Inc., Costco, Chico’s, Visit Stockton, and Charming Charlie’s.
Tickets will be sold in advance only and are available on the event website. Tickets range from $5 to $20 for general admission bleacher seating ($5 for high school students with an ID, and $10 for college students with an ID), and $40 for general admission floor seating.
For information on event and tickets, please visit the event website.