On April 4, NYU’s Program Board hosted their first ever Program Board fashion show at the Kimmel Center for University Life, showcasing seven different student designers and a variety of models from various NYU schools. The event, hosted by drag queen Jan Sport from “RuPaul’s Drag Race,” treated attendees to an evening of fashion and fun, spotlighting different creative looks, materials and inspirations. 

One of the designers for the show — Tisch first-year Tatiana Diomi — made clothing made out of yarn with five different models showcasing her work.

Diomi crafted garments such as a vest and a bikini, but also experimented with a sweater design.

“I think it’s so important to represent a lot of fashion designers out there, especially Black creators who do crochet and knitting,” Diomi said. “And here I am, working and doing a fashion show at NYU, and I never thought that would be possible.”

As each model walked the runway, the crowd watched in excitement, holding out their phones and cameras to take photos and admire the craftsmanship. Each designer’s collection was elevated with distinct music to fit the unique vibe of the models’ outfits. For instance, rock music set the tone for Steinhardt first-year Juno Kim’s collection, which featured clothing with a gothic flair, chains and dark colors.

The models then returned to the stage after each collection, allowing the entire collection to be presented cohesively. Each designer was also interviewed by Jan Sport, discussing their creative process and the concepts they wanted to convey through their collections. One of the designers, Steinhardt senior Nicadrio Lee mentioned that he wanted to cover a variety of themes, having each of his six designs represent a different theme, from inner turmoil and global tragedy to compassion and mental health.

The creative process leading up to the show took a lot of work and sleepless nights.

“I actually did a lot of theory reading and historical research,” Lee said. “I’m a believer of being educated before you do something.”

Many of the NYU students who volunteered to model for the event expressed excitement over this opportunity. Tisch first-year Nathan Sung — a friend of Kim’s who modeled for the collection — wore a gothic cape and heels.

“I’m just really happy to help my friend out with something that he’s really passionate about,” Sung said. “PB has been a really good conduit for me to meet other creatives and other people, and I think that’s something really valuable that I haven’t really found elsewhere.”

For PB president, Steinhardt senior Cecilia Gutierrez, the organization’s goal was to collaborate more and cultivate community at NYU, and to her delight, the event went just as planned.  

“We want to put on events that people actually want to go to, events that are like, you know, cultivating the culture,” Gutierrez said. “I was so blown away. It was perfect.”

The art chairs of NYU’s Program Board, CAS senior Lianna Poblete and Steinhardt sophomore Harper Lin, led the preparation for the event and aimed to promote inclusivity and celebrate creativity within the student body.

“I was really looking forward to seeing their work and the diversity in it, as well as how people are going to work together,” Lin said. “Just seeing our peers at school who go to class with us express their creative creativity that’s not usually shown in your classroom.”

“Harper and I wanted to focus on the talent in NYU because there are so many talented artistic people, and we wanted to make sure that everyone got to hear from them,” Poblete said. “The energy was amazing, and I was really proud of the work that we were able to put in.” 

Contact Julia Smerling at [email protected].