During the opening day thousands climbed the grand staircase and opened the glass doors to the copper-walled reception area of SCAD FASH, the first and only southern fashion and film museum. With an interior design infusing modern and antique elements and furnishings, the vestibule space had an intimate and soothing atmosphere.

Excited conversation buzzed throughout, turning to awe as the first piece of the ‘Oscar de la Renta’ exhibition — the pink beaded gown Taylor Swift wore at the 2014 Met Gala — came into sight.

A heavenly glow of pink and gold then floated around the room, coming from multimedia projections on the walls created by SCAD alumna Whitney Stansell (M.F.A., painting, 2008) and her husband, Micah Stansell. Images of hydrangeas danced along the walls, paying homage to de la Renta’s source of inspiration while infusing the space with a sense of motion and energy.

But the atmosphere extends beyond motion and lighting; the walls curve in a winding path to carry each visitor from one display to the next around the bend. In the golden-lit hall, mirrors line the left, and on the right are five shimmering, ethereal garments. These include Anna Wintour’s gold lamé evening dress, Huma Abedin’s wedding gown and former first lady Laura Bush’s silk chiffon jacket and skirt. The arrangement gives the illusion of an endless universe full of de la Renta’s designs.

At the end of the hall, many visitors turned into the Film Salon to watch a showing of the SCAD alumni directed and produced film ‘Ovation for Oscar’ and look for keepsakes to purchase and commemorate their first journey to the museum. Instead of key chains or exhibition posters, limited edition prints handcrafted by SCAD alumna Lucha Roderiguez (M.F.A., printmaking, 2011), and inspired by Oscar de la Renta’s designs are available for purchase.

Entering back into the gallery space, a full, flowery red dress catches the eye atop a small platform. The gown gathered many onlookers, many taking photos or selfies. It’s not hard to understand why; it was worn by fashion and music icon Beyoncé in Vogue’s March 2013 issue.

In the final room of the exhibit, visitors circle around a platform displaying Oscar de la Renta’s most notable flamenco styles. This takes guests by Oprah Winfrey’s silk embroidered evening dress worn at the 2010 Met Gala and a gorgeous tulle gown created for SCAD by de la Renta himself to display in the ‘Little Black Dress’ exhibit. Each guest enjoyed a moment with the wedding dresses of the designer’s stepdaughter Eliza Reed Bolen and his dear friend Miranda Brooks, and also the extraordinarily dramatic gown worn by Kristen Dunst in the film ‘Marie Antoinette.’

At the end of the exhibit, many went back for a second walkthrough, sat in the fabric-lined seats carved into the walls of the reception area, or stepped out onto the balcony and took in the wonderful city view. Upon exiting the exhibition space, one of the first fall 2015 cocktail dresses by Peter Copping, the creative director handpicked by Oscar de la Renta to succeed him, wishes all a glamorous farewell and invites visitors to return.

Click here to request more information or apply to SCAD.

The new SCAD FASH museum brings a momentous cultural addition to the heart of Midtown Atlanta. The inaugural exhibition, “Oscar de la Renta,” features more than 80 garments by the late designer and Peter Copping, the creative director de la Renta hand-picked to be his successor. Many of the looks on display are on loan from celebrities such as Taylor Swift, Sarah Jessica Parker and Oprah Winfrey, as well as de la Renta’s closest friends and family members. But that’s just the beginning of the SCAD FASH experience.

Read on for 10 more fascinating details about the museum.

1. Come for the fashion, stay for the film: SCAD FASH is unique in pairing two of modern culture’s most prevalent fascinations: fashion and film. The museum will screen some of the world’s best fashion-focused flicks on an ongoing basis, and for each exhibition, SCAD will commission an exclusive accompanying film. For “Oscar de la Renta,” SCAD FASH’s state-of-the-art Film Salon (featuring a 90-inch plasma display) is showcasing “Ovation for Oscar.”
2. Even the walls are works of art: SCAD alumna Whitney Stansell (M.F.A., painting, 2008) and her husband Micah Stansell worked together to design and install the multimedia works that frame the“Oscar de la Renta” exhibition. The installation features yards upon yards of fabric in a series of undulating cloth walls, lit in color and projections in beautiful botanical motifs and sparkling compositions that create a paper-lantern effect, adding a subtle sense of movement and energy to the garments.
3. It’s a teaching museum: SCAD FASH is directly connected to 27,000 square feet of academic studio and classroom space dedicated to SCAD’s top-ranked fashion programs. Within the space, students have access to the most advanced technologies and resources, preparing them for careers in the world’s billion-dollar fashion industry. SCAD students and alumni also have a myriad of opportunities to share their work at SCAD FASH through design showcases, fashion shows, and exhibitions.
4. Attention, learners of all ages: It’s not just students of SCAD who study and learn at SCAD FASH. K-12 classes are invited to visit the museum for a one-of-a-kind experience. Educators have access to SCAD’s award-winning curriculum guides with exercises customized to each exhibition and mapped to National Visual Arts Standards to share with their students.
5. Climb the stairway to heavenly views: Every SCAD FASH visitor enters the museum by the elegant Grand Staircase leading to a magnificent terrace that offers a breathtaking panoramic view of the Atlanta skyline. Inspiration for the entrance’s design was drawn from Hong Kong and Lacoste, France to pay homage to SCAD FASH’s connection to the university’s global community.
6. The interiors are tailor-made:  SCAD FASH includes many custom-made touches that reflect the latest in architectural and design prowess. The state-of-the-art features include Terrazzo floors consisting of marble, quartz, granite and glass; walls detailed with everything from wood paneling to fabric to copper to Venetian plaster; and custom rough-hewn wood shelving in the Film Salon.
7. Take home a custom keepsake: Through SCAD FASH 300, visitors have a chance to expand their art collection and support the university’s mission of educating future leaders in fashion, film, and fine art. For the current “Oscar de la Renta” exhibition, SCAD commissioned Atlanta artist and SCAD graduate Lucha Rodriguez created a print inspired by the intricate patterns and dynamic use of color in de la Renta's work. These exclusive works of art are available for purchase in the Film Salon.
8. Become a quick study on all things Oscar de la Renta: Also available for purchase is the new Rizzoli book, Oscar de la Renta: His Legendary World of Style, by André Leon Talley. Designed and prepared for press by SCAD, the volume is a work of art in itself and includes Talley’s recollections of his dear friend’s life and legacy, as well as personal essays by Anna Wintour and SCAD President Paula Wallace.
9. You can look, and yes, please touch: SCAD students and faculty are invited to use the newly refurbished Fashion Resource Library that offers an up-close, tactile learning experience. The library gives students direct access to an extensive garment study collection consisting of fabric swatches, snaps, buttons, and threads, as well as a set of skins and leather samples donated by Michal Kors.
10. Now that’s vintage: The SCAD FASH Study and Conservation Lab houses selections from the SCAD Museum of Art’s permanent collection of 4,500 fashion garments, accessories, and photographs. Many of these items, some of which date back to the 16^th century, will be featured in future SCAD FASH shows. Through scheduled appointments, SCAD FASH guests are able to view items from the collection to deepen their understanding of how garments are constructed.

Click here to request more information or apply to SCAD.

You know how a visit to a museum leaves you feeling so inspired and invigorated? SCAD FASH is making sure its guests can hold onto that sensation with far more than your usual exhibition poster. The new museum gives visitors the unique opportunity to purchase a SCAD-commissioned, limited-edition fine art piece specifically designed for each exhibition.

For the inaugural SCAD FASH show, “Oscar de la Renta,” SCAD alumna Lucha Rodriguez (M.F.A., printmaking, 2011) created 300 meticulously cut paper works inspired by the patterns, techniques and signature style of Oscar de la Renta's designs. Each piece was hand-crafted by Rodriguez in collaboration with SCAD Atlanta faculty and students.

Rodriguez’s designs are the first in the SCAD FASH 300 collection. Every SCAD FASH exhibition will feature a 300-piece, show-specific body of art created by SCAD alumni, with each one available for purchase for $300.

Rodriguez, a Caracas, Venezuela native, designs vibrant prints and intricately cut paper works from her Atlanta studio. A recipient of the 2010-2011 Emerging Artist Award from Atlanta’s Forward Arts Foundation, her prints and surreal installations have been exhibited in numerous solo and group shows in the U.S., Mexico, India and France.

For her SCAD FASH 300 collection, Rodriguez looked to Oscar de la Renta’s use of floral motifs, bright colors and luminosity. First, she created three original hand-cut designs that she then translated into a digital format. From there the prints were laser cut in various manipulations and individually pieced together by hand. In collaboration with SCAD Atlanta students and faculty, Lucha finalized her designs on-site at SCAD Atlanta.

Here, Rodriguez discusses the impact Oscar de la Renta has made on her work, and what it means to return to SCAD for this project.

SCAD: What are your thoughts on Oscar de la Renta and his legacy?

Lucha Rodriguez: I’ve always admired him. One of the things that stuck with me was when he said in an interview, “You should always have what you love.” You can miss anything else, but not the things you love. That stuck with me because the thing that I love most is art.

I also remember Oscar working all over the world. I was living in Venezuela at the time, watching him and all these designers and artists traveling everywhere and I realized that there’s so much to see and to learn from. It’s really inspiring to watch something that global, this language you can develop through art and design to communicate an idea. You don’t even need to know the language. Great design translates — you just see it and it makes sense. And that’s one of the things I loved about Oscar.

SCAD: How did de la Renta’s work inform what you created for SCAD FASH 300?

Rodriguez: For the latest Oscar de la Renta collection, the house was doing lots of lace with laser cuts. My shapes are usually more organic, but I wanted to mimic a little bit more of that visual style of lacing — of how delicate it can be. I thought it was a good relationship to my work, which was already organic.

My design is also inspired by nature because Oscar used lots of floral prints. It’s about creating a balance with the natural world, between humans and the environment.

SCAD: Growing up in Venezuela, were you always interested in art?

Rodriguez: I was always that kid drawing on the floor, on walls, everywhere. When I’d receive a gift, I would make something with the wrapping paper. The way I relate to the world and to others has always been through art. I communicate my feelings by making a little drawing, making a tiny little sculpture. Even when I had a fight with my brother, I would draw something in charcoal that said, “I don’t like you,” and put it on his bedroom door!

SCAD: Describe what it was like having the SCAD community come together to help you create 300 hand-made designs.

Rodriguez: It’s been amazing, even just coming back through those doors. I told Professor Robert Brown [chair of the SCAD printmaking department], “I felt goose bumps just being back in here.” I love this print shop. There’s so much opportunity here. You don’t know how much you have until you leave school. I spent so much time in the shop, experimenting with the presses. Being back has given me this new, fresh energy. I’m so happy to be here, and the students have been so willing to help and learn.

There’s an energy at SCAD that compares to nothing else. No other school has the spirit that SCAD has. It’s everywhere — in the students, the buildings, the work. It’s so powerful and you know that if something comes from SCAD, it’s going to be overwhelming and excellent.

I take every opportunity I can to come back to SCAD because I know I’ll be working with other creative people that love what I love. It’s sort of like a big family.

Click here to request more information or apply to SCAD.

Have you heard the great news, fashionistas, fashion designers and enthusiasts? In October, SCAD Atlanta will open the doors to the first distinguished southern fashion museum: SCAD FASH.

Here in this tribute to style and craft, expect international fashion exhibitions, films and lectures available to students and the public. It even grants the rare opportunity to engage with one-of-a-kind garments created by the world’s leading fashion houses, as well as looks from the SCAD permanent collection, including designs by Saint Laurent, Oscar de la Renta and Givenchy.

Situated in one of the country’s largest metropolitan areas, the museum is connected to our main building in Atlanta at 1600 Peachtree St. With an extension of 10,000 square feet, the museum will add a public gallery space, fashion conversation lab and a media library for educational film and digital presentations to the existing 27,000 square feet of academic studio space dedicated to our fashion students. As one of the largest fashion museums in the United States, SCAD FASH will enhance and engage the visual design perspectives of students and the public.

The inaugural exhibition, ‘Oscar de la Renta,’ celebrates the house of the late Oscar de la Renta. It's not quite the same exhibition that premiered in Savannah; this Atlanta presentation includes more. It will again showcase garments from the mid-1960s through the present, including gowns on loan from former first lady Laura Bush, Taylor Swift and Oprah Winfrey, but the expansion includes select garments by Oscar de la Renta’s new creative director Peter Copping.

Bonus: the exhibition will screen the film, “Ovation for Oscar,” which debuted at the Marché du Film at the Cannes Film Festival. Created by our alumni and students, the short documentary provides an intimate look at the making of a major museum exhibition honoring the famous artist.

Future programming at SCAD FASH will include praised exhibitions such as ‘i feel ya: SCAD + André 3000 Benjamin,’ and ‘Art x Fashion,’ an exploration of the relationship between art and design. Laurie Ann Farrell, executive director of SCAD museums and exhibitions, oversees all programming.

Need we say more? We'll see you at SCAD FASH.

SCAD Fashion Show has come and gone. During one fabulous night under the bright lights of the runway, up-and-coming designers finally showcased their amazing collections. What transpired before their designs hit the runway? What of the countless hours they invested in that moment of grace?

 Student designers, including Molly Sayers, enjoy a standing ovation after SCAD Fashion Show.

I had the privilege of following senior designers during their sprint to the runway. I sat in during their final critiques and heard their struggles and excitement as they pulled their collections together. The hours I spent inside Eckburg Hall, where the designers finalized the finest work of their college careers, were hypnotizing. It was illuminating to learn about one student’s work and hop to the next, only to be filled with admiration for another and yet another. But the collaboration between Molly Sayers (B.F.A., fashion, senior) and Kristin Hughes (B.F.A., fibers, senior) left the most enduring impression on me.

I first encountered their collection when I watched the models preview the looks for fashion designer Joseph Altuzarra during his surprise visit to SCAD to critique student work. I was instantly drawn to how the garments moved and the unusual use of shiny wooden triangles, purposefully placed throughout the pieces. I adored the soft fabric, which perfectly draped the models, trailing behind each movement. The craftsmanship was impeccable. Intrigued, I interviewed Sayers and Hughes to learn more, and so began my journey shadowing them throughout their process to the final runway. 

The inspiration for the collection sprouted from a combination of Islamic art and architecture. This came from Sayers, who has called many places home in her lifetime, including Qatar. With these initial concepts in mind, her focus turned to harmonizing geometric elements with something organic while simultaneously achieving minimalism, a notable trait of Islamic art. Why wood? Sayers has always endeavored to bewilder viewers by paring a stiff material with flowing fabric. She wanted to defy the assumption that wood is inflexible and un-wearable.

The Texas-born designers bonded over their interest in exploring diverse materials. Hughes’ practice primarily involves wood. She enjoys manipulating the element in various ways. When Sayers saw her work she knew a partnership was inevitable. “Since I am in fibers, I look more at the construction of a basic textile — it’s not as much business, it’s more fine art,” said Hughes. “So it has been a joy to get out of the fine art realm and be involved with a creative outlet for product development.”

In the early stages, Sayers and Hughes experimented with many different types of wood including iron-on-wood, typically used for construction purposes. However, it became clear that simply fastening the wood to the fabric achieved perfect juxtaposition. Hughes laser cut four different sized triangles to match the exact drape and movement of each garment.

As wood is a relatively untouched material within the fashion industry, their process was not always smooth. In particular, there was the issue of how to adhere the wood to the jersey fabric. Additionally, the duo had to address basic design challenges, such as balance, proportion, rhythm, emphasis and unity. Ultimately, relying on their skill and friendship, Sayers and Hughes found solutions and were chosen to participate in SCAD Fashion Show.

“I have always wanted this,” said Sayers. “Since I was in seventh grade and I looked up SCAD from Qatar on my computer. I carry that energy to create better, go further, be bolder, and explore how far I can go because of this experience.”

It was a treat to follow their story and see the fairytale ending on the runway at SCAD Museum of Art. I send my best wishes to my classmates for their future endeavors. As we cross the stage to graduate this weekend, congratulations.