Sheri Klak '21

Where are you from, and where did you grow up?
I was born in Edmonton, Canada; spent a year of high school in Germany; and have been moving around ever since — Victoria, Montreal, Boston, and now Paris.

What attracted you to the Fashion Studies program?
I grew up with an artistic, sewing mom, and have always been drawn to both the making and thinking sides of fashion. I love the hands-on manipulation of fabrics and creating the ideas in my head, but was also continually asking why — why we wear what we do and the cultural, communicative connotations of clothing. The making side brought me to a BA in Fashion Design, and the thinking side brought me to Fashion Studies. Paris is proving to be the perfect place to absorb the beautiful, material aspects while exploring the multidisciplinary world of fashion theory.

You are a teacher's assistant. In what class are you serving in this role? Doo you enjoy it? 
Yes; I'm leading recitations for the History of Fashion course and loving it! I get to hear Antoine Bucher's really rich lectures and then discuss films, video clips, and a wide range of readings. Being among students with diverse geographical backgrounds has made for interesting discussions and is a chance to explore history from a variety of perspectives. Being on the other side of paper submissions has also been both helpful for my own writing and really gratifying. I am finding I really enjoy being able to encourage and help students progress in their own work and am getting better at editing my own!

What advice would you give incoming students?
I've found that trying to be open as much as possible has helped with transitioning to a new place. I'm coming to this MA later in life than most of my fellow students but still wonder what I'm going to do with my life. I think it's a good place to be, and saying yes to as many opportunities as I can in the communities of Paris and of Parsons is leading me to all sorts of places I didn't know I wanted to be until I got there.