The African Student Association’s 16th Annual Fashion Show stole the “Halloweekend” spotlight.
ASA’s fashion show Saturday was filled with live music, dancing and stepping from some of UB and SUNY Buffalo State College’s dance groups. African prints and cloths took a modern approach as they walked the runway. Undergraduate, graduate students and alumni took part in the “Noir” themed show at the Marriot Hotel on North Campus Saturday evening.
Instagram famous Lorenzo Cromwell, callhimrenny, hosted the show along with Young Prince and Sita. The three of them kept the audience laughing and brought students on stage for dance battles.
But the African culture incorporated into the clothing is what stole the show.
The line BlaccTokio incorporated Japanese elements into their clothing. The models strode down the runway in bomber jackets, jogger pants and tunics with Japanese kanji and prints of famous woodblock paintings on them.
The designs showcased not only the diversity behind each piece, but the originality behind it too.
Another noteworthy line from the evening was The Grunge Project, a line created by Toya Mendez from Buffalo State. The models for this line walked in modern apparel that appeared to have been inspired by the Yeezy clothing line.
Julissa St. John, a junior fashion merchandising major from Buffalo State, said the new designs show the diversity of the designers.
“I think there is a great amount diversity amongst the designers, they bring a lot to the table,” St. John said. “Many other designers tonight have incorporated tribal schemes into their work, for example, a lot of African prints are used in the pieces. These prints are incredibly elegant and I think they really make the clothing stand out.”
St. John modeled for Mendez, the designer behind The Grunge Project. She said Mendez mostly designs menswear, but it is versatile enough that women can also wear it too.
For Ethan Pray, a junior accounting major, this was his third year modeling in the show.
“Everyone always shows a lot of love and a ton of positive energy during the event. All of the pieces from each designer are different and it really shows the many unique ideas behind the people of this generation,” Pray said. “Honestly, there was not one line that I modeled that I did not like. For me, the clothes are a form of expression for oneself and everyone here has really great ideas.”
Along with the African influence in many of the designs from the event, many designers chose to use a different theme in their lines.
Myriam Diomande, a UB alumnus, came to the event to support the UB Step Troupe (UBST).
“I was president of UBST last year and I am a big supporter of ASA as well. I want them to do a great job tonight and I support them all the way,” Diomande said.
The audience was not disappointed as the energy and perfectly choreographed performance of UBST wowed the crowd that night as well.
Gabriela Diaz is an arts contributing writer. Arts can be reached at arts@ubspectrum.com.
