FUTURE OF FASHION
Talented HCC fashion student draws top spot in global brand's design competition
Pierre Cardin's famed avant-garde brand is tapping into the talent of aspiring fashion designers with its annual Young Designers Contest, and a Houston Community College student made the short list of finalists. Marian Magdaniel is one of just six students in the U.S. and the only one from a community college to be selected as a finalist in the contest.
Leaders at the design house built by the late Pierre Cardin, the famed Avant Garde designer, held Master Classes at a handful of colleges and then chose a select group of talented designers to vie for the chance to work alongside the brand in France.
"To have the international design house of Pierre Cardin facilitate a Master Class with our fashion design and fashion merchandising students was an invaluable experience for students and faculty," says Andrea Bonner, program chair of HCC's Consumer Arts and Sciences Center of Excellence, which houses HCC's Fashion Design program. "We are the only community college and the first stop on Pierre Cardin's U.S. visit, which is commendable. The team members said they were impressed with our students' works and our Fashion Archive, our faculty and our overall fashion department facilities."
Magdaniel, a 28-year-old Venezuelan-born, Houston-raised fashion student, went to New York City on Wednesday, November 16, for the fashion contest's gala. "I'm excited to experience this amazing opportunity, but also to proudly represent Houston Community College," Magdaniel says.
Although Magdaniel didn't win the grand prize, a three-month apprenticeship with the Pierre Cardin design team, she represented Houston and put HCC on the worldwide fashion map.
"Marian is an excellent student in the fashion design program. She is always willing to learn, listens and takes constructive criticism well," says Bonner. "She is a great student and colleague to her fellow students. She represents the program and college in an exemplary way."