HÀ NỘI — Twenty-one students from the Hà Nội-based London College for Design and Fashion (LCDF) will display their graduate collections here between August 3 and 5.

Dubbed “The Innovators”, the graduates will introduce their creative and trendy fashion designs.

The fashion exhibition will take place at 3pm, August 3, at the college campus, 98 Tô Ngọc Vân Street while the show will be organised at 7.30pm, August 4 and 5, at Melia Hanoi Hotel, 44B Lý Thường Kiệt Street.

The students chose their own topic for their creations, like Lê Ánh Chi’s "Roman Holiday", a collection inspired from her memory of a holiday in Rome, or Nguyễn Minh Trang’s “The Abandoned” collection, inspired by abandoned amusement parks.

“The highlight of this year’s collections is most certainly our graduates’ ability to be experimental and dynamic with both colour and unique silhouette structures,” said Donna Bramhall, a lecturer of the graduates.

“New approaches to the design process this year focused on the development and exploration of concept research by encouraging more observational drawing, mixed media and sampling that would in turn be directly used to create more innovative and unique silhouettes, textures, and textiles," she said.

Metallics, laser cutting, 3D embellishment techniques and digital printing on diverse and sculptural silhouettes are seen as the key strengths of this year’s graduate collections, she added.

“As a result of the training at The London College of Design and Fashion, I see already across Việt Nam graduates a longevity associated with their brands, having the creative knowledge and ability to reboot their brand on a regular basis, in order to maintain the buying public’s interest, with the ability to increase their market share,” noted Prof Douglas MacLennan, an educational consultant from the UK.

The event will also provide an opportunity for designers to exchange ideas, meet business representatives and learn about market trends and demands.

Designer Lâm Gia Khang, a former student at the college, will introduce his latest collection, while Prof MacLennan will share his experience in the field.

An area at the exhibition will showcase new uniform design for needy primary pupils in the city.

Visitors will have a chance to learn about the study programme, from entrance through to graduation, as well as receive free consultations on personal styles for different occasions.

Established in 2004, the college has trained various popular designers for domestic fashion sector like Kelly Bùi, Bobby Nguyen, L’Attelier, Rue des Chats, Vũ Tá Linh, Lâm Gia Khang and Vũ Thảo.

“I think the college should expand its number of students and enhance the study quality so that graduates then will be capable to design on fibres and not only on textiles,” said Vũ Đức Giang, chairman of Việt Nam Textile and Garment Association, “The sector plans to produce 18-20 per cent of the whole textile products under the brand names  of Vietnamese designers rather than by industrial plants by 2030.”  

Last year, the college opened two new programmes: graphic design and interior design. — VNS