To respond to the prompt for the 2024 Gallatin Fashion Show, 'Legends', I pulled inspiration from a class I took the past year on the writings of James Baldwin. Specifically, his writing on the portrayals of the history of the American West through movies of 'Cowboys' and 'Indians,' and how these films serve to obscure the true history which they take from. Legends are often distorted to glamorize past events, making them feel less like reality and more like fables as time passes. I see the protective and polished forms that Western-style clothing takes, which continue to come in and out of trend, to function in a very similar way. For my collection, as a way to reflect on my learning from the course I took on Baldwin, and to respond to the prompt of Legends, I aimed to propose a more vulnerable interpretation of these designs.
Every piece from each of the four looks was created from scratch with hand-drafted patterns. Many of the fabrics were hand-dyed, and others were sourced deadstock. All were made from natural fibers including wool, ramie, silk, cotton, and pineapple leaf fiber.
