Less than a week after their collections hit the runway during Woodbury University’s 53rd Annual Fashion Show, two Fashion Design seniors have received scholarship awards from the California Fashion Foundation, the university announced today.
Ariana Nazarian of Pasadena has received the Fashion Scholarship Fund Award, the Karen Kane Design Award and the TUKATECH Technology Award (a full CAD fashion program), while classmate Lucy Ochoa, from Arizona, was named winner of the Swat Fame Design Award.
“As Ariana and Lucy demonstrated at the Fashion Show, their creations vividly use the language of the fashion and costume design education they received at Woodbury,” said Anna Leiker, Chair, Fashion Design. “Both have been able to combine inspiration and technique in truly beautiful ways, and we congratulate them on recognition that they richly deserve. The California Fashion Foundation awards mark an auspicious beginning to two very promising careers.”
“Since I was ten years old, barely old enough to understand what it meant, I knew that I would grow up to be a fashion designer,” Nazarian said of Amaras, her senior collection. “I’m now standing at the threshold of that long-held dream. My Armenian heritage and my family are an integral part of my journey. The motifs that appear throughout my collection are callbacks to these influences: hand-done crochet patterns and traditional wood carvings are executed in color combinations commonly found in an Armenian daraz, or costume. Amaras evolved through the layering of seemingly opposing techniques: delicate hand beading and crochet work passed down to me from my grandmothers combined with bold stenciling. The result is an eveningwear group that embodies strength, tradition and perseverance.”
“Music has always been an integral part of my life,” Ochoa said of The Summer Runway, her collection. “From a young age, I remember making my own mix CDs; and begging my mom to buy me the iPod so I could have music with me wherever I went. Growing up, I started looking for the artistic meaning behind the lyrics, but I never truly noticed how music inspired me until I delved into the world of fashion. This collection reflects my personal relationship with music, fashion and art. For my collection, I took inspiration from the musical work of The Rolling Stones and David Bowie. Also, there is a heavy influence of artwork from Van Gogh and Monet to create vivid, colorful and dramatic silhouettes that hark back to the 60’s era in a new, modern way. I explored my own form of Impressionism by using hand dyed textiles, distressed fabrications and embroidered embellishments throughout my collection. Doing what I love is amazing, but being able to inspire and positively effect on others is truly what makes me artistic.”
The California Fashion Association (CFA) was organized in 1995 as a non-profit public benefit 501(c)(6) Corporation and serves as the association for the apparel and textile community. The CFA deals with all the significant issues affecting the apparel and textile industry of California. In 1999, the California Fashion Foundation was created as the fundraising arm of the CFA. It is a non-profit (C-3) public benefit program that creates yearly events and fund raising opportunities for scholarships and other defined charities allied to the fashion industry.
About Woodbury University
Founded in 1884, Woodbury University is one of the oldest institutions of higher education in Southern California. The university ranks 15th among the nation’s “25 Colleges That Add the Most Value,” according to Money Magazine, was voted “Best Graduate School” in the Los Angeles Daily News 2018 Readers Choice Awards, and is a 2018-19 College of Distinction. Woodbury was a finalist for the General Community Service Award, a part of the 2015 President’s Higher Education Community Service Honor Roll recognition program. With campuses in Burbank/Los Angeles and San Diego, the university offers bachelor\\’s degrees from the School of Architecture, School of Business, School of Media, Culture & Design, and College of Liberal Arts, along with a Master of Business Administration, Master of Architecture, Master of Interior Architecture and Master of Science in Architecture. The San Diego campus offers Bachelor of Architecture and Master of Architecture, Master of Interior Architecture and Master of Landscape Architecture degrees, as well as a Master of Science in Architecture, Real Estate Development. Visit woodbury.edu for more information.
