ENCLOTHE: Evolve Fashion Show Highlights Student Creations at Crystal Bridges

ENCLOTHE, the annual fashion show featuring garments designed by U of A students, returns this year to Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville with special preshow opportunities, including a chance to meet Venita Aspen.

ENCLOTHE: Evolve is set for two shows on April 26 at 5:45 p.m. and 7:15 p.m. The Evolve theme points to the progress of students in the program, the fashion industry as a whole and ENCLOTHE, the show, itself.

This year's emcee is Annemarie Dillard Jazic, vice president of Dillard's.

Every garment featured has been made this semester by students in the apparel merchandising and product development program. The garments and students who designed them are the stars of the night, but the event highlights all aspects of the program. Guests get to see the business, sustainability and merchandising aspects of what students learn while designing their items.

Tickets are $75 for priority reserved seating, $55 general admission and $25 for students. There is also a special preshow event for $25 featuring a pop-up shop from Dillard's and other exclusive items. Tickets are available online now.

If tickets remain, a limited number will be available at the door the day of the shows: $60 for general admission and $30 for the preshow event.

In addition to the Dillard's shop, the preshow event features exclusive designs from Aspen's new collection. Aspen is a full-time model and influencer known for her glamour, immaculate parties and perfect outfits. A star on Bravo TV's reality program Southern Charm, she founded her own modeling agency, The Aspen Agency. She has modeled for brands such as Anthropologie, Old Navy, Target and Le Creuset. Aspen will be at both shows, and guests can meet her at the preshow event.

"Providing support for this year's show as the faculty coordinator has been the best experience of my academic and professional career so far," said Sarah Hixson, instructor in the Apparel Studies and Product Development Program. "I am humbled by the trust placed in me by predecessor Stephanie Hubert and by the AMPD program to guide these students to success. Most of all, I am astonished by the creativity, industriousness and authentic passion of our student team. They are designing a show that will exceed guests' expectations and affirm the ENCLOTHE show as a cornerstone of our program."

Students participating in the shows are in the Fashion Show Theory and Production and/or the Advanced Apparel Production courses.

Student co-directors for this year are Haylea Naylor and Simeon Smith.

"Enclothe is a student-led fashion show for the Apparel Merchandising and Product Development Program," Naylor and Smith said in a statement. "It started in 2015 after a single student wanted to make a fashion line for a senior capstone project. Since then, the show has grown to include the whole AMPD program, as well as multi-college collaborations, and has taken place at multiple locations across Northwest Arkansas. The 2022 show, Enclothe: Embody, was presented to a sold-out crowd at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art. This year, we're back at Crystal Bridges for Enclothe: Evolve. It is expected to be bigger than last year and continue to provide an impact on the students and community. Join us for an amazing night of fashion and entertainment. Experience this production offered at two separate times, each with an exclusive pre-show event with a Dillard's pop-up shop and exclusive designs from Venita Aspen's brand new collection."

In addition, once again, the apparel program - which is part of the School of Human Environmental Sciences in the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences - is collaborating with other students across campus.

Show partners include students and representatives from the Department of Agricultural Education, Communications and Technology; the Department of Horticulture; the Jean Tyson Child Development Student Center; the Fay Jones School of Architecture and Design; and the College of Engineering's Department of Electrical Engineering.

About the Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences: Bumpers College provides life-changing opportunities to position and prepare graduates who will be leaders in the businesses associated with foods, family, the environment, agriculture, sustainability and human quality of life; and who will be first-choice candidates of employers looking for leaders, innovators, policy makers and entrepreneurs. The college is named for Dale Bumpers, former Arkansas governor and longtime U.S. senator who made the state prominent in national and international agriculture. For more information about Bumpers College, visit our website, and follow us on Twitter at @BumpersCollege and Instagram at BumpersCollege.

About the University of Arkansas: As Arkansas' flagship institution, the U of A provides an internationally competitive education in more than 200 academic programs. Founded in 1871, the U of A contributes more than $2.2 billion to Arkansas' economy through the teaching of new knowledge and skills, entrepreneurship and job development, discovery through research and creative activity while also providing training for professional disciplines. The Carnegie Foundation classifies the U of A among the top 3% of U.S. colleges and universities with the highest level of research activity. U.S. News & World Report ranks the U of A among the top public universities in the nation. See how the U of A works to build a better world at Arkansas Research News.