Enough with written exams! Fashion belongs to a live audience

The School of Design and Visual Arts (SDVA) at Apeejay Stya University in Gurgaon has always believed in education through creative means. Their practical approach to learning stands out as the work of their students speaks manifold. This time is no different, they recently held an “open jury display” in which students from 3rd, 5th and 7th semesters came up with unique creative exhibits of their works covered during Fall2022.  It was held as an alternative to the traditional practice of written exams.

The jury consisted of 23 students from B. Design – Fashion Design , each of whom had the freedom to select their own themes and create outfits. The work revolved around the learnings from the semester wise modules i.e. design studio and workshop, research and construction as well as dissertation presentation followed by industry oriented projects.

Students enthusiastically displayed their design portfolios and collections at the fashion construction lab. The clothing lines presented were based on current market trends and fashion predictions. Each student displayed their inspiration, mind maps, colour schemes, and silhouettes in an intriguing way using a variety of fashion boards. The organised display of artworks, miniature models and final garments became a popular stop for the audience perusing the studio.

The erudite SDVA faculty namely Dr. Saurabh Kumar, Assistant Dean, SDVA, Dibyendu Tripathi, Professional Faculty – Graphic Design and Nidhi Suhag, Asst. Prof – Fashion Design, were mighty impressed with the body of work presented by their pupils. The event was also graced by the faculty from other Apeejay institutions. Dr. Sunil Kumar Roy, Dean, School of Management Sciences, Dr. Sanjay Ahirwal, Dean of School of Journalism and Mass Communication, and Dr. Parakshit Vashisht (COE) also attended the event and evaluated the student’s work.

Further, Dr. R. S. Dhankar, Vice Chancellor, Apeejay Stya University, attended the event and gave detailed feedback on the design collection by evaluating each student’s work. He offered encouraging criticism and fresh creative ideas to all students. He encouraged them to capitalise on their strengths and innovate their collection for the upcoming semesters.

Many interior design students also had their work on display. Their outputs were presented in a variety of formats, including an A3-sized portfolio, flat drawings, sections, elevations, and prototypes. The interior rendered views demonstrated the skill set that students acquired as a result of using the modern software.

All students had to explain their thought process behind picking a particular topic in addition to displaying their works schematically to the jury and the audience. The students received much insightful feedback from the jury and the applause from the audience boosted the self-confidence of the students.