Experiences

The Cornell Fashion & Design Expo is an annual spring competition to showcase our students’ design innovations. Those selected present their designs to alumni and industry partners in New York City.

Cornell Fashion Collective (CFC) Spring Runway Show is a hallmark student event on the Cornell campus. The professional-quality fashion show features work by student designers and is steered by a student management committee.

The Barbara L. Kuhlman Scholars’ Group Exhibition showcases unique fiber arts and wearable artworks created by fashion design students who were awarded the Barbara L. Kuhlman scholarship.  The exhibition is the culmination of a year-long process.

Lectures

The Laundress Lecture, established in Honor of Professor Emerita Kay Obendorf, brings fashion industry experts to campus to share their experiences as both artists and entrepreneurs. With a focus on educating students and strengthening industry connections, this interactive event encourages students to envision themselves as the next generation of fashion entrepreneurs.  The Laundress Lecture is held in partnership with the Cornell Fashion Industry Network.

The Nixon Distinguished Speaker Series brings prominent figures in the apparel and textile industry to campus for a rich and accessible academic conversation. Appealing to a broad audience, this event attracts students and faculty as well as community members and alumni. Recent speakers include Walé Oyéjidé, Burak Cakmak, and Stuart Weitzman.

The Kimberly Hillier Memorial Lecture offers students, faculty and community members the opportunity to learn from leading practitioners in interior design and architecture. Lectures have included an exploration of the intersection of creativity and sustainability and how gender constraints and stereotypes have shaped and limited everyday objects throughout history. Speakers include Virginia San Fratello, Annmarie Adams, Lori Brown and Adrian Oarr.

The Glenn H. Beyer Memorial Lecture puts forward speakers who have expertise on current environmental issues within the design field. From user-centric design to creating behavioral change in society, speakers have asked audience members to think about the nexus of design and sustainability through a range of lenses and at different levels. Presenters include Jessica Cooper ’07, Rick Fedrizzi and Troy Savage.

Residencies

The Hybrid Body Lab Artist in Residence Program provides collaboration between researchers in the Hybrid Body Lab and artists as they work together on the latest on-body designs and emerging miniaturized technology. During the eight-week residency there are opportunities for relationship building and public-engagement as artists share their exploration with technology-involved art practices. The inaugural artist-in-residence was Morgan Chen.  The program is funded by the National Science Foundation & Cornell Einhorn Center for Engaged Learning. 

The Designer in Residence provides students with a unique opportunity to interact with a professional designer who works individually with students, offers workshops, and curates an exhibit. Building relationships with faculty and students, the designer in residence becomes part of the Human Ecology community – offering inspiration, critique, and insight during their time at the college. Recent designers-in-residence include Sabeen Omar, Mimi Prober and Helen Storey.