Photo Courtesy of Fashion School Daily
Karina Garcia’s troops seized the runway as they stormed the beaches of the Academy of Art University’s 2015 graduation fashion show. Garcia presented a collection inspired by Georgia O’Keeffe, Pearl Harbor, and World War II uniforms, that featured the textile designs of Mariana Pazos. Garcia, herself, is no stranger to textiles (or the spring show). Her prints were selected in 2009 to accompany a graduate collection.
Though Hawaii’s Pearl Harbor, and the historic event which took place there, served as a partial muse for the collection, the darkly ironic presence of Japanese themes is undeniable. Yin Yang is alive and well when it comes to the color scheme which is comprised of complementary combinations, red-violet/yellow-green and blue-violet/yellow-orange. Garcia discusses duality when speaking of the color combinations, “…they are placed in order to project two faces in the garments. All front faces of the garments are printed with a hint of navy [in the front and on the back]… the hint of color makes this collection half dark and half printed.” Lightweight navy wool is used as trim, specifically along seam lines to further accentuate silhouette. Though its appearance is stark, it creates a fluid transition from print to print, especially those in the same color way. There are 12 colorways across three textile designs that carry on this fluidity in a transition from bright to dark.
The leafy prints work like camouflage against a Hawaiian terrain. Styled with sun visors and glasses, making the look all the more incognito. Yet their neon vibrancy, like an explosion, focuses your attention. The military influence is more prominent in the garment details. Sleeveless jackets, layered, mid-calf hem lengths, and oversized pocket bags (reminiscent of canteens) nod at pragmatic uniform design. The lapel, missing in the traditional sense, is represented here as cutouts, or outlined by trim, in the shoulders of several designs, and the drop-waist of another. Shoulder details continue to convey the warrior theme as they are exaggerated to appear like the model is wearing armor.
Garcia’s collection displays a master’s understanding of editing and variety that is so often missing from student collections.
Bridget Tyrrell Vintage 