Graduation Day

Students in FIT's Menswear Class of 2003 Get Ready for the Fashion Industry

by Chris Schmidt

May is of course graduation time at many of the city's colleges and universities, and at the Fashion Institute of Technology that means student exhibitions. But selection for these shows can be a final trial for graduates. All 28 students in the menswear program's class of 2003 were invited to submit two complete ensembles each for their program's exhibit at The Museum at FIT, but not all of them made the cut.

Competition is nothing new, however, for these students, who are, after all, about to enter a highly competitive industry. The menswear program's chairman, Mark-Evan Blackman, noted that the number of students who had entered the program two years ago was "appreciably more than the number graduating.The attrition rate is high."

The work of the menswear students who were selected for the show is on display at The Museum through May 23. Their designs, worn by a group of mannequins arranged on four-tier scaffolding, offer a look at what some members of the newest generation of designers have in mind.

Nathan Gryszowka, 23, is one of three graduating students who also nabbed an award from the Young Menswear Association, an organization that offers scholarships to promising design students. At the opening reception for the show, Mr. Gryszowka described the look of his winning design -- essentially tailored blue track pants and a mocha-colored sports coat over a hooded sweater -- as "refined worker's aesthetic." He said that his designs were inspired by a recent move to Williamsburg, Brooklyn, though he said he "added a little fashion" to the mix. Mr. Gryszowska himself was dressed in chinos and a white polo shirt with a YSL monogram.

Leah Redmond, a native of Hawaii, is one of several women graduating the program. Her background is in costume design, but she was drawn to the menswear program because she "really wanted to learn tailoring properly." At 27, Ms. Redmond is already working for menswear company Cloak.

But not all students designed with their eyes to the market. Fynn M'llyer, 23, attended the opening wearing a garment so unique it could only be of his own creation: A cropped, double-breasted jacket that was half bolero, half Robin Hood. The pants he wore were alarmingly tight, but the leggings he designed for the show were notable for having an inseam rose only to the mannequin's knees. Mr. M'llyer, whose name is of his own choosing from Welsh and Irish sources, described his aesthetic as "medieval quarterback."

Another student with unusual ideas was Peter Sieper, a 27-year-old former toy designer. Mr. Sieper described his attention-getting aesthetic as "mock-off," which means "knocking off recognizable styles, like Goth, with a humorous twist." One the jackets Mr. Sieper designed was inspired by the King of Hearts playing card, with a neck opening and set of arms at either end of the garment -- a look that may take some menswear customers some time to get used to, but that Lewis Carroll would no doubt have loved.

"Art & Design Graduating Student Exhibition," through May 24 at The Museum at FIT, Seventh Avenue and 27 th Street, 212-217-5800.