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GM Imagine Winners
Five students from International Design and Technology in Chicago won the opportunity to create their own designs inspired by different cars. This is the sixth year General Motors has sponsored the school’s Imagine fashion show, and design competition. Students designed clothing based on their interpretation of chosen vehicle. They were also challenged to design for a specific garment category such as Career, Sportswear, Eveningwear, and Avant-garde DFP got a chance to catch up with some of the winners to ask them about their experience. DFP: How did you get involved in the project? Koree Gilbert: I submitted an illustration for each car. Renee Patton: My interest in the General Motors Contest was to not only represent The International Academy of Design and Technology (IADT) and my classmates, but to express myself as an artist who took on the challenge to design a garment inspired by an automobile--the 2008 Chevrolet Malibu. Nora Del Busto: I had such a great experience with this project last year. I really wanted to participate again this year. It all started with a kick-off at the auto show in McCormick Place where all five of the cars were displayed. I started sketching right there and took lots of photos of all the cars---especially the Hummer. I ended up submitting sketches for three different cars, and luckily I was chosen to create an ensemble for the Hummer. Tiffany Schneider: I heard about the competition through my teacher and decided to participate. I attended the Chicago auto show to get inspiration. DFP: How was the overall experience? Koree Gilbert: The overall experience was exciting. Winning, the show, and seeing your design on the stage was the top. Renee Patton: My overall experience was one of effort, hard work, sleepless nights and full of excitement. I would do it all over again! Nora Del Busto:The overall experience is fantastic! It all goes by very quickly...we are on a tight schedule and there is no room for procrastinating. The school facilitates the model fittings and they pair us up with an advisor to help us out. This year we were also given video cameras to record our progress...fun! Tiffany Schneider: It was a beautiful experience. Very fast paced when paired with school and a job, but completing my garment and seeing it on the runway was a huge reward for all the hard work. It was stressful at times only because I was in the spotlight and I felt a lot of pressure not to let anyone down, I'm representing GM my school, myself and all the students who could've been picked instead of me. I'm a very lucky girl! It was an honor to be involved. I see all the talent in my fellow classmates and I'm still surprised I was chosen. Surprised, but happy. DFP: Did the program prepare you for the challenge? Koree Gilbert: Yes... the preparation was all schools doing Renee Patton: Definitely! I couldn't have asked for a group of instructors more talented and knowledgeable than those offered at IADT. This is the moment every Fashion Designer in college wants... the opportunity to prove what one is worth, and the GM Competition allowed me to do just that. Nora Del Busto: The school definitely prepares us for the contest. They are the ones that set the fitting schedule so we are able to make the garments fit our specific model the day of the show--there is no guess work. They also pair us with an advisor (mine was Young Kim) who helps us troubleshoot anything that might be going wrong, etc Tiffany Schneider: In most ways yes, they prepared me but I'm not used to being under a spotlight so that was the only thing I wasn't completely prepared for. I felt really insecure in doing the video blogs because it didn't feel natural. It made me pay closer attention to the way I talk and the faces I make. DFP: What was it about the car that inspired your designs? Koree Gilbert: My inspiration came from the interior. The exterior is always an eye opener, but the automobile industry has put the interior designing as important esthetically, I thought the colors were calming so I made sportswear to be comfortable and added a twist to the collar. Not only is worn as sportswear but it also looks sophisticated. Renee Patton: I was inspired by the shapes, color, interior, exterior and headlights of the Chevy Malibu. Every detail of my design: career, day to evening attire took careful consideration. Nora Del Busto: The grill of the Hummer was my main inspiration for my design, but I also took inspiration from the colors, and overall ruggedness of the car. Tiffany Schneider: The classic silhouette. It's a sleek, beautiful car. It has a perfect blend of modern and classic style and although I think its fancy, it’s not showy and I really like that. It's a humble, fancy car! When I design I love mixing opposites: masculine& feminine, classic and modern, soft & structured and so on. This creates a lovely balance and makes very versatile garments. The SAAB Turbo X had the perfect ingredients for my design. DFP: Any advice for people interested in your field? Koree Gilbert: Fashion is not just designing and illustrating...it is much broader, and one needs to have knowledge in all aspects of fashion, design and constructing. Renee Patton: Three words...Be the best! Nora Del Busto: Be prepared for the work that is involved. It is not as glamorous as people might think. Yes there are fun shows and events, but it takes a lot of hard work. I was an attorney before I changed to fashion design and I have pulled more all-nighters in design school than I ever did in law school! It’s all worth it though when you see your garments come down the runway Tiffany Schneider: Fashion is not just drawing pictures! It is hard. It takes patience. Fashion involves so many things; you can't expect to get by on your sketching alone. Illustration is a nice '' feature'' but you have to be able to make wearable garments with beautiful craft and amazing fit. Construction and craft age the most important! I'm only saying all of this because it was my own mistake to think that my drawing would be a passport. I am learning the hard way. Check out our video archive to see video blogs of the winners -Charlena Hall
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Picture courtesy of idatchicago.edu
