So fresh & so clean: Fresh Faces in Fashion
By Melissa Cantor
Fashion is a field known for its prodigies. Zac Posen broke into the field at the age of 16 and was dressing celebs like Naomi Campbell by the time he was 20; Michelle Smith was the first American to ever work at Hermès in Paris at age 18 and launched her Milly brand shortly after graduating college. Coincidentally or not, both Posen and Smith had their runway debuts during GenArt's annual Fresh Faces in Fashion show, which has served as a showcase for the work of emerging design talent in various cities for the past 12 years, and in Miami for the past five.
With nearly 1,000 audience members expected, this year's Fresh Faces Miami event on April 12 is poised to be the organization's biggest yet. Gen Art received more than 60 applications for a show that will only include the work of seven new designers and two Fresh Faces alumni from last year's show in New York.
This year five local designers - menswear, womenswear, swimwear and accessories - are prepared to showcase their work during Fresh Faces. Here's a little about Miami's best.
AUGUST ALEXANDER
Kingston, Jamaica-born Courtney Alexander Russell learned how to draw at private classes at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, so it's no wonder his designs feature dramatic structural lines. He integrated the word August into his brand name because it conveys high authority, and his menswear, with exotic fabrics, extensive hand detailing and deep colors, aspires to a regal air. Russell also owns a boutique in Dallas.
FABIANA FERREIRA
A native of Brazil who studied fashion design in Miami and Italy, Ferreira cites a Brazilian bikini as her first favorite outfit. But the versatility of her seductive swimwear collection is that it integrates a range of light-as-air dresses and tops, as well as accessories, in a range of pastel and jungle-colored prints. Find her funky cruisewear at Passion Swimwear at the Ritz-Carlton, South Beach and Rebel on Biscayne Boulevard.
SEPTIMO
High-profile fans of Silvia Fassardi and Gustavo Rohrscheib's line of semi-precious stones include Janice Dickinson, Gloria Estefan and Vivian Fernandez, the First Lady of Panama. The design duo uses a 24-karat gold overlay process in crafting their auspicious pieces (the line is named after the lucky number seven in Spanish), which rely heavily on jewelry motifs. Fassardi and Rohrscheib have plans to open a Coral Gables flagship, but Septimo is also carried at Bloomingdales, hip.e in Coral Gables, Julian Chang Couture in Miami's Upper East Side and Sparkle in Coconut Grove.
SHUMAQ
Glass points to sister team Shumaq's romantic, vintage-inspired cocktail dresses as indicators of the high-quality, commercial clothes being showcased at Fresh Faces Miami. Vanessa and Jacqueline Barrantes started their line less than three years ago in 2005, but they're already carried by Barney's, Anthropologie and Intermix.
NAZLY VILLAMIZAR
Villamizar's leather handbags, which mix calfskin with cow bone and horn, are all the rage among Miami fashionistas. Born in Colombia, Villamizar has a studio in the Design District and designed the staff uniforms at chic sushi spot Domo Japones. In Miami, her accessories are sold at The Shop (1121 Washington Ave., Miami Beach; 305-538-1999).
Tickets to Fresh Faces Miami 2008 are $75 for VIP access and $45 for general admission, and are available by calling 305-695-8200 or visiting genart.org.
Published: 4/08