Catalyst!

We’re back from a spectacular swing to Baltimore to see our daughter’s collection in the 26th Annual Benefit Fashion Show at MICA. The show is sponsored by the Center for Identity and Inclusion and is open to students of all majors. Daisy applied last October and was thrilled to be chosen to participate.

We arrived last Thursday evening and enjoyed a dinner view of the first Washington Monument from the Hotel Revival.

Daisy was still busy adding finishing touches and awaiting the final rehearsal at 10 PM that night. I sketched an anthurium in the cafe Friday morning, eager for our moment to see her.

We have missed this girl!

Baltimore was totally in bloom. For winter weary Mainers, it was heavenly!

We walked from her apartment over to campus, and saw this, one of many posters by MICA’s Globe Press.

Daisy was too nervous to eat much. She’s been working hard for months, in addition to four courses, including two theses for Interdisciplinary Sculpture and Humanistic Studies. She headed to class and we stopped at the MICA Store.

Couldn’t resist a few books and supplies!

Later we met my RISD classmate, David Hicks, for a quick dinner at Tapas Teatro before heading over to the show.

There she is, bottom photo.

Kudos to the graphic designers, Victoria Escobar and Maria Sanchez on a great program. Photography is by Derek Blanks, a MICA alum who came to campus in early February for a photo shoot.

Daisy’s collection of eight pieces, Exoskeleton, “explores the potential of a boundary- to protect, to inhibit, to consecrate, to enliven…largely inspired by the silhouettes of plankton, these sculptural garments envelop each model within a semi-transparent membrane.” Wow. Island girl goes big! She bent reed for the structure, and wove strips of silk on some of the pieces.

Our local friend, Karen Houppert, also joined us for Friday’s show. We knew this wasn’t your typical fashion event. I was unable to get good photos of each group, but hopefully this gives a glimpse of the incredible company Daisy was in.

The first collection onstage, The Skin of a Human Being, was by Joy Li, a sophomore sculpture major from China.

Each designer chose their own music and choreography. So many moving parts!

I loved Reveal and Reclaim by Cristy Rodriguez, a freshman fiber artist from Miami.

Max Cortes is a junior in the General Fine Arts and Master in Arts Teaching programs. His works use recycled materials and androgynous cuts for a fun, casual collection called Inhabitants.

Amir Khadar, a sophomore fiber major from Minneapolis, created a lush line called Wild Seed that included intricate beading and his jewelry.

Chance Mason was the first high school student to participate.  A senior at Baltimore Design School, he proved his ambitions with Catamorphisis. I later sketched my favorite piece, a gown fit for a butterfly.

Sophomores Hannah Moog and Kristen Tapia designed Contigo as a cheery interpretation of small acts of kindness. Each model shared a gesture of affection with the next, culminating in a group hug.

Hannah Ahn and Yuchae Lee, both from Korea, teamed up for Beautiful Struggle, which incorporated the native languages of the models in flowing fabrics that emphasized the diversity of bilingualism.

After intermission, Sam Zanowski, a sophomore interdisciplinary sculpture major, brought out his satirical Parade, complete with a small car and other props.

Reuben Francois’ Wetlands “re-contextualizes images and cultures from Southern Louisiana” where he was born. This line was cohesive and fresh, and I later sketched one of the looks.

Pei Jung Ho, a graphic design major from Taiwan, used discarded plastic to make a striking statement about mass consumption in her collection, diSpOsable.

Anthony Chukwu created a blend of influences from his native Nigeria and contemporary street wear in his Ankara’s Bleeding Edge.

And finally, Daisy. We’d only seen photos of one piece at this point, but knew she had made big leaps of discovery with her line. Her friend and MICA alum, Morgan Strahorn, created a beautifully loopy soundscape.

Fanni Somogyi models Daisy Braun sculpture in Exoskeleton

Cole Kilbridge models Daisy Braun’s sculpture in Exoskeleton

Gianna Biscione models Daisy Braun’s sculpture in Exoskeleton

Tanvi Sharma models Daisy Braun’s sculpture in Exoskeleton

Rebecca Luo models Daisy Braun’s sculpture in Exoskeleton

Calvin Hutcheon models Daisy Braun’s sculpture in Exoskeleton

Cassandra Fayorsey models Daisy Braun’s sculpture in Exoskeleton

Josh Fink models Daisy Braun’s sculpture in Exoskeleton

All eight models remained on stage and performed a brief dance before Daisy joined them at the end.

I was blown away!

The final designer of the night, Dasha Burobina, is a sophomore illustration major from Russia. Her interest in animation showed in Naiznanku, a collection that “empowers people to display their unique inner self organization and feelings prior to fashion trends and brand names.” The black lighting created a bold glow for her illustrative designs.

Lauren Jackson, show director and printmaking major, brought all the designers on stage for a final bow. I am so proud of each of them! What accomplishment!

Bravo!!!

The downside of large works is storage, which was not conveniently available. Models generously helped to stash them up in the balcony of Falvey Hall. LOVE THEM.

Exhausted, Daisy came back to our hotel for a couple of hours to tell more stories of the show. Whew! She DID IT.

Day 2: we returned to the MICA campus, past this cool mural recently installed at the new Dolphin Design Center.

Over brunch at Paper Moon Diner we continued talking about the show. Besides relentless eye candy, this place has the best milkshakes.

Daisy brought us over to Station where she has a studio.

This historical train station houses gallery space and studios for Interdisciplinary Sculpture and Fiber seniors.

She showed us her process: drawing shapes on the studio wall, nailing along those lines, soaking reed that is then wrapped over the nails to dry overnight. Then she lashes the reed forms together with bakers’ twine. Daisy estimated she tied well over 1000 knots.

This is one of the preliminary drawings done for her proposal last fall.

We tried on an early prototype. They are remarkably light and flexible.

We peeked at her roommate, Ellie MacInnes’ fiber studio. Ellie will have work in the upcoming Experimental Fashion Show called You Are Here on April 28! Go, if you are in Baltimore!

Daisy had to run some pre-show errands before the second performance. We headed to Cosima, where Donna Crivello is executive chef.

Can you tell these two once shared a desk at the Boston Globe? Nowadays we can only catch her feeding souls with her Sicilian menu inspired by her grandmother’s cooking. Thank you, Donna!

We returned to Falvey Hall for Saturday night’s show, another fantastic production, with President Sammy Hoi and some faculty in attendance. Here they all are!

Back row: Cristy Rodriguez, Saloni Shah, Yuchae Lee, Kristen Tapia, Hannah Moog, Amir Khadar, Joy Li, Chance Mason, Lauren Jackson, Sam Zanowski, Dasha Burobina. Front row: Gianna Chun, Hannah Ahn, Max Cortes, Patricia Chevez, Daisy Braun, Reuben Francois, Anthony Chukwu.

More mingling afterwards with these wild things.

Models Calvin Hutcheon and Annie Kwon in Daisy Braun’s sculptures in Exoskeleton

A standing ovation for all the designers, models, volunteers, and staff that pulled off a tremendous event! MICA recorded the whole show here. Daisy was 14th out of 15 collections, so her 6 minutes is at the 1:58 mark. Enjoy. We will head back to Baltimore in a month for the thesis Art Walk and her commencement. We are so proud of our island girl!