School: Gallatin School of Individualized Study
Year: Junior
Major: The Hero, The Anti-Hero and the Self-Consciousness of Legend
Style Inspiration: Mom and J.R.R. Tolkien

Fantasy plays a big part in Gallatin junior Katharine White’s life. White describes her concentration — the hero, the anti-hero and the self-consciousness of legend — as a discussion of “literary figures that consciously set out to transform themselves from man to myth.” White decided on this concentration because of her childhood love for “sword stories, fierce battles, grave journeys and grand fantasies.”

“I suppose my concentration is some sort of happy salute to a childhood believing birch boughs were great swords and trees were my men-at-arms,” White said.

White’s love of fantasy has also made its way into her wardrobe.

“I’m into pieces with a bit of history,” she said. “My wardrobe staples at the moment are all from my mom.”

These include a vast assortment of jewelry like bone bracelets, colorful beads, a plated snake belt and a velvet-lined, clamshell necklace. In addition to her huge collection of jewelry, she prefers hard lines, high heels, long skirts, lots of lipstick, and volume and texture with a masculine edge.

White’s mother and grandmother were both seamstresses, and had a big influence on her fashion sense. Some of her favorite looks are comprised of pieces they made for her, including a silk and chiffon tea gown.

“Fashion never felt foreign to me because I had seen these women make fashion with their own two hands,” she said.

White also likes to shop locally at secondhand businesses and small-time clothiers.

“Art students can be brilliant and often make really inventive pieces for super reasonable prices,” White said.

Aside from style, White is interested in film.

“I worked on my first set this past summer and absolutely fell in love with the rhythm of the day,” she said. “I was lucky enough to be involved with a few projects recently.”

White’s excited spirit not only carries through in her style, but also in everything else she touches.

“Now I’m pretty much a card-carrying member of the artistic, idealistic and having-a-bit-of-trouble-paying-our-rent club,” White said. “I think it’s my thing, and I’m stupidly happy about it.”