PARSONS HONORS SHEILA C. JOHNSON AND DONNA KARAN AT 2012 FASHION BENEFITWomen's Wear Designer of the Year Jin Kay, Menswear Designer of the Year Christy Jeehyun Lee, Children's Wear Designer of the Year Giuliana Raggiani |
NEW YORK, May 2, 2012—Last evening, Parsons The New School for Design presented its annual Parsons Fashion Benefit at Pier Sixty, Chelsea Piers. The event honored Parsons Board Chair, entrepreneur and philanthropist Sheila C. Johnson, and Parsons alumna and board member Donna Karan. Parsons alumnus Narciso Rodriguez, who worked with Karan at Anne Klein following graduation from Parsons, will introduce a fashion show of the top student collections. The Fashion Benefit, now in its 64th year, raised nearly $1.4 million for scholarships and programs at Parsons, a global leader in art and design education with programs that span the disciplines. Past honorees include Parsons alumni Reed Krakoff and Marc Jacobs, as well as industry leaders Vera Wang, Francisco Costa, and Diane von Furstenberg, to name a few. Fashion design's finest came out to support Parsons, The New School for Design including REED KRAKOFF, ALEJANDRO IGELMO, BIBHU MOHAPATRA PETER SOM, CHRIS BENZ, CARLIE CUSHNIE, BEHNAZ SARAFPOUR, MICHELLE OCHS, GABI ASFOUR, LISA MAYOCK, BEHNAZ, SARAFPOUR, ROGAN, KAY UNGER, ASHLEIGH VERRIER and VIVIENNE TAM. Parson's Dean, School of Fashion, SIMON COLLINS, Executive Dean, JOEL TOWERS, and President, DAVID VAN ZANDT celebrated alongside the industry's top influencers, including, JULIE GILHART, the CFDA's STEVEN KOLB, Opening Ceremony's HUMBERTO LEON and CAROL LIM, FERN MALLIS, Vogue's CANDY PRATTS PRICE, MILK Studio's JENNE LOMBARDO, MAZDACK RASSI and ZANNA ROBERTS RASSI. Some of the most important names in New York's social set were also in attendance including PETER DAVIS, LORENZO MARTONE, and BONNIE MORRISON. EDITOR'S NOTE: For a press packet for the Parsons Fashion Benefit and Noon Show, including images, please visit http://www.newschool.edu/pressroom/files/2012FashionBenefit.zip. For runway images, visit http://www.newschool.edu/pressroom/files/2012FashionShow.zip. "Sheila and Donna have set an example for our students as women who have risen to the top of their chosen fields and have shaped contemporary culture. They also share Parsons' deep commitment to the future of design," said Parsons Executive Dean Joel Towers. "Both have been active voices here at Parsons, and continue to lend insight and support to important new initiatives at the school." Among the initiatives Johnson has championed at the school is the creation of the Sheila C. Johnson Design Center, an award-winning exhibition and public programming center that enables Parsons to connect its students and the general public to broader issues in the world of art and design. Through the endowed Donna Karan Professorship, Karan has enabled Parsons to develop an innovative new graduate program in Fashion Design and Society, where select designers are able to refine their craft while gaining a global understanding of the field. In addition, the endowed Stephan Weiss Design Strategies Dialogues brings to campus leading thinkers at the intersection of design and business. Beyond Parsons, Karan's Urban Zen Foundation has worked to preserve cultures, empower children and advance wellness in communities around the world. "Since I first set foot at Parsons, I have been amazed by the incredible talent of its students," said Johnson. "It is an honor to be recognized by the school, especially alongside Donna, who has become a great friend and inspiration to me." Said Karan: "Parsons gave me my start in the industry, and to be able to support future designers is incredibly important to me. I am particularly excited to be honored with Sheila, who has been so instrumental to the success of Parsons, as well as to celebrate the first graduating class of the new MFA in Fashion Design and Society." At the event, Executive Dean Towers announced the establishment of the Donna Karan Fashion Design and Society Scholarship Fund, to provide financial support to students pursuing the MFA in Fashion Design and Society, and also the Sheila C. Johnson Design and Diversity Scholarship Fund, to provide financial support for tuition, housing, and living expenses to exceptionally talented, but underserved students who may not otherwise have the opportunity to pursue higher education. A highlight of the Fashion Benefit is the runway show of select collections by graduating students. The Designers of the Year in children's wear, menswear and women's wear were announced by Simon Collins, dean of the school of fashion at Parsons, and Sheila Johnson, Parsons board chair. The winning designers were Women's Wear Designer of the Year Jin Kay, 25, from Seoul, South Korea; Menswear Designer of the Year Christy Jeehyun Lee, 25, from San Francisco; and Children's Wear Designer of the Year Giuliana Raggiani, 22, from Boston. This year, in addition to collections by graduates of the school's legendary BFA program, the show will feature select work by students in the MFA Fashion Design and Society program, which will debut its thesis collections during New York Fashion Week this September. The benefit will also showcase special projects with external partners including Allen Edmonds, Coach, The Shoe Polytechnic, and Swarovski. Parsons Festival Sponsors of the Parsons Fashion Benefit include Stylesight, Ric Pipino, The Edit Desk, In_Digital, Factory PR, MAC Cosmetics, Fashion GPS, and The Fancy. * * * As CEO of Salamander Hotels & Resorts, LLC, a hospitality company she founded in 2005, Johnson oversees a growing portfolio of luxury properties. Grand Golf Resorts of Florida features three golf and family resorts reaching from the Gulf to the Atlantic; Grand Resorts at Cap Cana in the Dominican Republic also features three luxury properties. Ms. Johnson’s portfolio also includes the Five Star Woodlands Inn near Charleston, South Carolina; and the ultra-luxurious Salamander Resort & Spa, currently being constructed in Middleburg, Virginia. Ms. Johnson has also long been a powerful influence in the entertainment industry, starting with her work as founding partner of Black Entertainment Television. She has served as executive director of four documentary films, including Kicking It, A Powerful Noise, She Is the Matador, and, The Other City, a critically acclaimed documentary about the HIV/AIDS crisis in Washington DC. In May, Ms. Johnson joined the AOL Huffington Post Media Group as Strategic Advisor for Multicultural and African-American Initiatives. A fervent supporter of the arts and education, Ms. Johnson was appointed by President Obama to the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities. In addition to serving as Chair of the Board of Governors of Parsons, she is a board member of the Sundance Institute, the Tiger Woods Foundation, the Jackie Robinson Foundation, ANNIKA Foundation, and the University of Illinois Foundation. In 2006, Ms. Johnson was named global ambassador for CARE, a leading aid organization that fights global poverty by empowering women. Since 2011, she has served as a member of Accordia Global Health Foundation’s International Council, rallying support for the foundation’s efforts to overcome the burden of infectious diseases in Africa. She is also a member of the Council on Foreign Relations. About Donna Karan Throughout her long career, Karan’s peers have acknowledged her achievements with numerous accolades. The Council of Fashion Designers of America (CFDA) has saluted her six times; and most recently in 2010 she was nominated for their womenswear designer of the year award. In 2003, Karan was the first American Designer to receive Fashion Group International's "Superstar Award." A year later, Parsons gave her an honorary doctorate to commemorate her contribution to the school and fashion industry, and in 2007, Glamour magazine named Karan one of their Women of the Year. A member of CFDA ’s board of directors, Karan conceived and spearheaded its Seventh on Sale benefits to raise funds for AIDS awareness and education. Karan co-chairs the annual New York “Kids for Kids” events for the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation since its 1993 inception, as well as underwrites “Super Saturday,” an annual designer flea market/barbeque to benefit the Ovarian Cancer Research Fund. To facilitate her many on–going philanthropic involvements, in 1999, Karan and Weiss established the Karan Weiss Foundation. Karan's Urban Zen Foundation, founded in 2007, is the culmination of Karan's philanthropic efforts. About Parsons The New School for Design # # # |
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