The Daily Bulletin Archive

By Phyllis Camesano

A unique collaboration comes together on April 25 when the Buffalo State College Technology Department and the Burchfield Penney Art Center present Runway 2.0, a day of fashion with two events featuring the collections of Buffalo State fashion and textile technology students and professional Western New York designers, all set against the panoramic backdrop of the Burchfield Penney’s East Gallery.

The student fashion show from 4:00 to 5:00 p.m. benefits the Buffalo State Fashion Scholarship Fund. Tickets are $5 presale and $7 at the door.

The evening performance from 9:00 to 10:00 p.m. includes student designers alongside Western New York professionals with $40 and $100 tickets benefiting the Burchfield Penney Art Center at Buffalo State.

“The day exemplifies the potential and power of collaboration between the college and the Burchfield Penney,” said Erin Habes, lecturer of technology, who produced last year’s student fashion show, staged at the Albright-Knox Art Gallery.“It will be an exciting day.We hope everyone will dress to the nines and be awed by the collections, the space, and the entertainment.”

In addition to a raised runway that winds through the East Gallery, guests can expect paparazzi, a Joan Rivers character working the red carpet, strobe lights, and live music by Them Jazzbeards.

In producing the event, Habes worked closely with fashion and textile technology program coordinator Elaine Polvinen, technology lecturer David Brinson, and Susan Lojacono, manager of development events for the Burchfield Penney, as well as Buffalo State students and community volunteers.

Fashion and textile technology students have spent the semester designing a women’s or menswear collection that reflects the current Charles Burchfield exhibition The Romance of Urban Decay.Concepts will be presented to a review panel that will select finalists to be featured in the runway shows. At the evening performance, an external and internal jury will select the recipient of the $1,000 Nancy Belfer Senior Collection Award. Collections by Western New York professional designers, including Adam Lippes, will also included in the evening show.

“The Burchfield Penney is happy to host the second iteration of Runway in our magnificent East Gallery,” said Ted Pietrzak, director of the Burchfield Penney Art Center. “The celebration of fashion as art in Western New York and at Buffalo State presents an opportunity to transform the museum and to support an important college initiative.”

The Design Department is also contributing to the event, with a special mini-exhibition of shoe art by department chair and associate professor Carol Townsend’s students, as well as a sneak preview of an international felt hat project exhibition by associate professor of design Jozef Bajus’s Buffalo State and Slovakia students. The complete exhibition will be presented at the Buffalo and Erie County Historical Society after the Runway 2.0 event.

Fashion students and faculty members are contributing designs for T-shirts that will be available at the fashion shows. White Bicycle developed the Runway 2.0 logo for the production. A large array of Romance of Urban Decay designs and products are currently available for customized purchase from the BSCRunway20zazzle Web site, hosted by the Fashion Technology Program. The site is continually updated with new designs and products to be featured at the April 25 events. All purchases benefit the Fashion Scholarship Fund.

Tickets for the student show are available at the Rockwell Hall and Campbell Student Union box offices.General admission tickets ($40) to the evening show include the fashion show, a dessert reception, music by Them Jazzbeards, and dancing following the show.$100 VIP tickets include a 7:30 p.m. cocktail reception, front-row seating, and a swag bag of fashion goodies. Tickets for the evening show are available by phone at 878-3254 or at the Burchfield Penney Visitor Services desk.For more information, visit www.Runway2.org.