The Backstory 30 years of Marist Fashion
1993 Mod’Spe Paris fashion business school is founded. The school offers both Bachelor’s and Master’s degree programs that prepare students to become highly qualified fashion marketers. Calvin Klein’s latest muse, Kate Moss, rises to fame as a part of the controversial “heroin chic” fashion trend. This trend is a reaction against the “healthy” look of supermodels like Cindy Crawford and Claudia Schiffer, popularizing pale skin, dark circles underneath the eyes and angular bone structure. 1995 Hit movie Clueless is released. Protagonist, Cher Horowitz, portrayed by Alicia Silverstone, instantly become a style icon, teaching the world the importance of designer greats like Azzedine Alaia. The average movie ticket costs $4.35. 1996 Alexander McQueen wins the British Designer of the Year Award, despite the negativity surrounding his controversial fall 1995 “Highland Rape” collection. His reputation is solidified as a leading fashion visionary. 1998 The first iMac is released. It is noted for its colorful exterior panels and 15 inch monitor. It targets the lowend consumer with a $1,299 price point. 1999 69 fashion design and merchandising students are enrolled in the Marist Fashion Program. Former director of the program, Elizabeth Sordes, retires. 2000 NYC apartment rent is approximately $3,700.00/month. The average pair of Converse All-Stars costs approximately $26.31. 2001 The fashion facilities in Donnelly Hall are renovated after many years of having only two rooms available for both student and faculty use. The new renovation adds two design studios, two classrooms, and a computer lab, in addition to multiple offices for the fashion department faculty. 2002 The Marist College Fashion Program presents its very first student run boutique, Fashionology. 2004 Online shopping begins to gain momentum, earnering over $72 billion in sales. 2006 Radley Cramer is appointed director of the Marist College Fashion Program. The Devil Wears Prada is released in theaters. The average movie ticket costs $6.55.
2010 The average pair of Converse All-Stars costs approximately $45.98. Ecommerce generates over $197 billion in sales. 2013 The Marist Fashion Department sends its first three students to study abroad at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University. The students take design and merchandising courses as well as study Mandarin and Chinese culture. 2014 Marist acknowledges designer Betsey Johnson’s remarkable career with a Silver Needle Icon Award during NYFW on February 12th. Anna Wintour stirs controversy by placing reality star Kim Kardashian and rapper Kanye West on the cover of American Vogue. Marist Fashion changes its Fashion Design degree program from a Bachelor of Professional Studies (BPS) to a Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA). The Fashion Merchandising degree program changes from Bachelor of Professional Studies (BPS) to a Bachelor of Science (BS) with an accompanying choice of concentration in Business, Product Development, or Fashion Promotion. Web sales blow past the $300 billion threshold, closing the year at nearly $305 billion in revenue. 2015 The Marist College Fashion Program’s student run boutique Fashionology, changes its name to MPORIUM. The same year, River & Stone, a private label developed by Marist Fashion students, is created. Marist Fashion Program returns to New York Fashion Week, hosting a reprise show of Korean designer, Son Jung Wan’s spring 2016 collection. 2016 Apple’s least expensive iMac to date currently retails for $1,099. It features a 21.5 inch screen and Retina display. Reality star turned model Kendall Jenner, and pop singer Justin Bieber are cast as the 2016 Calvin Klein campaign stars. Approximately 483 fashion design and merchandising students are enrolled in the Marist College Fashion Program. The third issue of the Marist Fashion Magazine is released both domestically and internationally. Marist hosts the 30th annual Silver Needle Runway and Awards at the Mid Hudson Civic Center. After serving 36 years as president, Dennis Murray retires.
1984 The first Macintosh computer is released. It is introduced during a Super Bowl ad, boasting a mouse, fast speeds, and a 9-inch monitor. Retail price is $2,495. 1985 Donna Karan produces the “body suit” which is deemed both innovative and functional for females to wear either day or night, as well as layer with other pieces. 1986 The Marist College Fashion Program hosts the first Silver Needle Runway Show on campus in an academic building, with 100 people in attendance. 1987 Dirty Dancing debuts in theaters, inspiring an era of crop tops, midi dresses, and classic denim. The average movie ticket costs $3.91. 1988 Anna Wintour becomes editor-in-chief of American Vogue. Her first cover model wears a bejeweled Christian LaCroix jacket paired with a pair blue jeans. This is the first time high and lowend fashions are mixed on a major fashion cover. 1989 The Marist College Fashion Program invites designer Michael Kors to the studios to work with fashion design students and critique their portfolios. 1990 NYC apartment rent is approximately $3,200.00/month. The real estate market begins to settle from the dramatic price hikes of the previous era, however there is still a staggering increase. The average pair of Converse All-Stars costs approximately $27.56. The Marist College Fashion Program invites designer Marc Jacobs to work with fashion design Students and critique their portfolios. 1992 Celebrity Mark “Marky Mark” Wahlberg is cast as the Calvin Klein campaign star. The Perry Ellis spring 1993 collection debuts highlighting several grunge trends such as flannel shirts, printed “granny” dresses, Dr. Martens, and knit skull caps.
1974 Diane Von Furstenberg designs the “wrap dress”, blending both comfort and style in a flattering silhouette for nearly every body type. 1975 A pair of Converse All-Stars costs approximately $8.18. 1976 Roy Halston Frowick becomes one of the most popular designers of the decade, creating the widely praised minimalistic draped gown, as well as his signature jersey halter dress. 1977 The Bennett College, an all girls preparatory school in Millbrook, New York, files for bankruptcy. One hundred Bennett students then transfer to Marist College in hopes of completing their education. Twenty-eight of those new students declare a major in Fashion Design and Merchandising. The World Trade Center in NYC is completed. Subway fares are 50 cents per ride. NYC apartment rent is approximately $335.00/month. Saturday Night Fever debuts in theaters. The average movie ticket costs $2.13. 1979 Dennis Murray is appointed as the third President of Marist College. Celebrity model and actress Patti Hansen is cast as the face of Calvin Klein Jeans. 1980 Calvin Klein begins to build his empire with denim, underwear and eventually a men’s line. Celebrity model Brooke Shields is cast as the 1980s campaign star. Shields is only 15 years old when the campaign is released, accompanied by the tagline, “Do you want to know what comes between me and my Calvins? Nothing.” CBS deems the commercial inappropriate and bans it from broadcasting. The average pair of Converse All-Stars costs approximately $17.38. 1982 NYC apartment rent is approximately $1,700.00/month. Real estate pricing is rapidly increasing in the NYC Metro area due to many prewar and postwar apartments getting converted to coop apartments. Pat Benatar’s hit single “Shadows of the Night” is released, Benatar had a significant influence on trends such as leopard leotards and black two-piece suits.
—Meghan Fazio and Sabrina Whitford
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48 | Marist Fashion
Vol. 3 | 49
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