Student magazine holds fashion show

Today art will spring to life and glide down a runway in 6-inch stilettos as UNC’s student-run fashion magazine hosts its semi-annual fashion show “Le Tour de Fashion.”

Maria Ward, assistant editor and co-stylistic director of Kaleidoscope fashion magazine, envisions the human body as a blank canvas.

“Fashion is an art, but it is also a state of mind. It can change how you feel and how other people perceive you,” Ward said. “When you wake up in the morning and slide on a pair of heels you instantly feel sexy and appear confident.”

The fashion show will spotlight couture from Paris and will celebrate the uniqueness of five of the most recognized international fashion hot spots: Germany, Spain, Russia, Japan and Italy.

Although the featured outfits were not designed by students, they have been tweaked by Kaleidoscope stylists.

The majority of the outfits featured today on the runway come from closets of Kaleidoscope models, stylists and staffers.

“On one hand it would be great to pull clothes from stores, but on the other hand it’s cool because we are showing students that we pulled these outfits together from out own closets and they can too,” said Channing Dalton, co-stylistic director of Kaleidoscope.

Fashion is not the most typical form of art, but Dalton said she believes it can be one of the most creative.

“Style is very objective. Every culture has their own idea of what makes something fashionable,” she said. “Each country has a look that is unique to them and them alone.”

Today’s show will spotlight the most prominent stylistic aspects of each country. Prima ballerina and UNC student Alexandra Silverman will model a white tutu and black corset inspired by traditional and romantic Russia.

The show will feature UNC students who applied to a modeling call earlier in the semester.

“Putting together a fashion magazine is a huge collaborative effort. We look for assistance and inspiration from any and everywhere,” said Marisa Staton, the editor-in-chief of Kaleidoscope. “Everyone on staff came together to develop the idea for the show, from staffers to stylists.”

The collective effort the staff puts towards its fashion shows and photo shoots also goes into finding the clothes to be featured.

The group hopes its efforts and the show will help dispel beliefs that fashion is shallow or materialistic. Kaleidoscope hopes to show students that fashion is something of substance and creativity.

“Fashion is something that everyone can be a part of and should be,” Ward said. “It is more than just designers and labels, it’s an art focusing on self-expression, originality and ingenuity.”



Contact the Arts Editor at artsdesk@unc.edu.