The Durban University of Technology’s Department of Fashion and Textiles hosted their annual Fashion Exhibition at Brickfield Campus on 1 December 2023.
The theme for the 2023 Fashion Exhibition was ‘Garmenting: Fashion as artistic expression’. The term ‘garmenting’ refers to the use of clothing and the dressed body as a medium for visual art. The 2023 third- year cohort of students used the theme to design and create capsule collections that looked beyond fashion as a cultural phenomenon.
The exhibition space displayed creative work from their 2024 graduating class third year Diploma students, Advanced Diploma students and Postgraduate Diploma students. The event was a celebration of the students’ dedication to their design skill and craft. With the assistance of a team of industry professionals and creatives, each student displayed a garment ensemble alongside a professional photograph.
The evening commenced with a screening of 29 short fashion films-one for each third-year student. The third-year collections were filmed over the course of six days at locations in and around Kwa-Zulu-Natal including The Point Precinct, AmmaZulu Sculpture Gardens, Addington Children’s Hospital and The Red Desert Reserve. The compilation of films can be viewed using the following link: https://youtu.be/W_pjXYkGWL8
The fashion film format was originally explored as an alternative to traditional runway shows during the years of COVID-19 lockdown. This multimedia form of visual communication was continued after being well-received by both students and industry professionals.
The event concluded with the announcement of winners in five different categories of awards; Best range on Show was awarded to Thembeka Balungile Ngubane while Thandeka Madikizela won Most Innovative Range; Siyathokoza Zulu’s work was recognised as the Most Commercial Range; Senamile Mfekaye won Best Technical Range and Lethokuhle Mhlongo received a Special Recognition Award.
The 2023 competition was judged by a panel of fashion industry experts and influential media personalities that included the award-winning radio personality and magic maker Jane Linley-Thomas, DUT Fashion alumnus and award-winning emerging designer Malcolm Makgope, and DUT Fashion alumnus and fashion industry expert Nombulelo Madonsela. The award prizes were sponsored by FP&M SETA, MC Thompson, I Computing Solutions, Jonsson Workwear, JMV Textiles and Debonairs Pizza.
Pictured: Attendees at the fashion event. Photography: (Nic Murphy, Josh Reid)
Article: Supplied
