Student Fashion Design Hits the Runway

by Amy Leo
2/23/01
Everyone knows that many Oberlin students make their own clothes or at least aren’t afraid of altering what they already have. It’s hard to walk from Mudd to King without seeing at least a few examples of fabric triangles ruthlessly expanding a once straight denim seam. What Oberlin doesn’t often see is the obvious thought and effort that went into making the clothing for last Saturday’s Merde Chaud fashion show at the ’Sco. 
The exhibition, organized by junior Lauren Harkrader, was the culminating event for a Winter Term project in design and sewing. The eight students who participated throughout January produced pieces which were far from the usual Oberlin homemade fare of slashed T-shirts and patchwork dresses. This difference is due both to the time that was put into the creations and to a sincere interest in creativity and craftsmanship that was evident in the clothes.

Not all the designs presented are ready for Milan, but that didn’t seem to be the point of Merde Chaud (French for “hot shit”). The materials ranged from trash bags to burlap sacks and, in keeping with the playful title, most had no pretense of haute couture. But despite the somewhat obvious desire to stand apart from high fashion, a few of the pieces could not conceal their designer’s natural eye and were undeniably “ready to wear.” 

Senior Colin Booy’s well-constructed mod “Cigarette Dress,” along with sophomore Andrea Fritsch’s dress of men’s ties were two of the night’s highlights. Although not the first person to use ties as material (does anyone else remember Mayim Bialik’s skirt in the opening credits of Blossom?), Fritsch’s rendition set itself apart with an asymmetrical hemline and technically difficult bodice. 
Harkrader’s work ended the show and ultimately stole it. Her designs were both inventive and practical, a rare combination in amateur fashion. Most importantly, though, Harkrader’s pieces had the ability to provoke self-doubting thoughts in the minds of the audience. 
In her mini-collection, a bright green raincoat and old pillow cases became such successful skirts that any viewer interested in fashion cursed themselves for not thinking of it first. A jacket made out of a quilted American flag sleeping bag was appropriately the final piece shown since its transformation seemed to require the most skill.
The Oberlin students modeling the pieces exhibited charming enthusiasm and senior Jason Corff’s playful hair and makeup artistry complimented the uniqueness of each garment. 
Unfortunately, the night was not seamless. The production problems of the show seriously undermined the potential of the designs. The effort was clearly put into the actual pieces while the presentation of them seemed hasty and chaotic. 
The show was choppy due to constant interruption by the inaudible microphone the designers were attempting to speak through. Straining to hear what was said and pushing past masses of people just to see anything proved far too overwhelming. In this sense, while Merde Chaud differed in subject from other art shows at Oberlin, it fell prey to an all too common problem of display getting in the way of the content.
Even though many people left the ’Sco frustrated, having not seen or heard much, they saw more fashion design on Saturday than they have probably ever seen at Oberlin. Considering the attendance and participation at the ’Sco, it’s clear that clothing is an art form that Oberlin students care about, although you wouldn’t know it from the course catalog. One of Harkrader’s goals through Merde Chaud was to tap into this interest and make it known. And, while nowhere near ready to join the calls for American studies, film studies or Asian American studies, after Saturday, the desire for fashion design at Oberlin doesn’t seem quite as unreasonable.