Calvin To Offer Fashion Show, Sweatshop Simulation

From: Phil de Haan <dehp@calvin.edu>
Date: Wed Mar 22 2006 - 16:00:45 EST

March 22, 2006 == MEDIA ADVISORY

The Fashion Advisory Board (FAB) at Calvin College will pair a fashion show
with a sweatshop simulation to raise awareness of fashion as both an art form
and a legitimate interest for Christians.

"Fools and Bobbins: Spring Collection 2006" is the name the FAB has given to
the show it will sponsor on Saturday, April 1 at 8 pm in the Calvin Fine Arts
Center.

Organizers say the event is a logical follow-up to FAB's January 2006 show,
which drew an unexpected crowd of 500 people to the Fine Arts Center.

"There was so much interest and motivation and excitement from the last show,"
says Rachael Koeson of Calvin's student activities office. "People were coming
to my office the Monday after the Saturday show and saying, 'When are we going
to do another one?' So I wanted to foster that excitement."

The sweatshop simulation (deliberately planned to fall on the day before Cesar
Chavez Day) will be sponsored by Calvin's Social Justice Coalition (SJC) and
will take place from 9 am to 9 pm on Thursday, March 30. Participants will
sign up for shifts of one to six hours, producing canvas bags.

The April 1 fashion show will feature eclectic clothing in a variety of design
categories, everything from Urban Wear to Rainy Day to Bush Rave (which
references the Australian Outback, not the current American president).

But behind the zany categories and the amped production values is a serious
thesis about fashion, organizers emphasize.

"It's the same principle that guided the previous show," says Koeson, "which
is a recognition that the way we decide to present ourselves is indeed an art
form that should be celebrated."

Underlining that point is a documentary produced by Karen Abad, a junior film
studies and psychology major who interviewed a number of Calvin students about
their opinions on fashion.

The documentary will be screened as part of the show.

For the complete story see
http://www.calvin.edu/news/releases/2005_06/spring_fab.htm
For pics and more from the January show see
http://www.calvin.edu/admin/sao/events/gallery/fashion-show
Contact Rachael Koeson at koeson@calvin.edu or 616-526-6605

-end-
Received on Wed Mar 22 16:01:02 2006

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