Variant Magazine takes the runway this week as the Variant Fashion Show will be held in the Galbreath Chapel from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Wednesday, April 19. The entrance fee to the show is $7.99 for general admission or $12.99 for VIP admission, which includes pictures and mocktails.
The dress code for the event will be black tie formal, although all guests are encouraged to wear whatever makes them comfortable. Tickets to the event can be bought in advance online.
Jack Wilburn, a sophomore studying classics, acts as the head of makeup for Variant Magazine.
Wilburn said he is in charge of organizing all makeup for the photoshoots done by Variant as well as creating mood boards and deciding the makeup looks for each shoot.
He said that although there is no specific theme for the fashion show, its main purpose is to showcase the fashion talent of artists around Athens. Wilburn has experience in performing in drag and will therefore be hosting the event in drag as well, he said.
Wilburn said he hopes people enjoy the show and get to see the diversity in fashion that can be seen in Athens.
“I want people to take away that Athens is full of really diverse talents,” he said. “It is just a pool of creatives who each have really unique perspectives. We range in different ages, different gender, sexuality and racial identities, and each element of Athens’ diversity has some fashion talent to offer.”
Katie Johnson, a junior studying communications and Variant’s head of styling, said she was new to Variant this year but wanted to implement a fashion show into the year’s events. She said she had gotten additional inspiration from an anatomical fashion show earlier in the year which was set at the Baker Ballroom by one of the medical professional organizations on campus.
Johnson was immediately inspired to have Variant’s fashion show set in the Baker Ballroom too, but realized that the spot was filled for the weekend she had planned on doing the show. The Galbreath Chapel, however, was open for use, so she and her fellow organizers decided to plan the show there.
“That’s kind of on-brand for Variant to do something like that,” she said. “It’s very camp.”
Margaux Augier, a senior studying journalism and Variant’s Editor-in-Chief, said she agreed with Johnson regarding Variant’s individual vibe and that hosting a fashion show in a chapel rather than in a more traditional space was very classically Variant.
“Variant wanted to do the fashion in the same way they do everything else, and that’s out of the box,” she said. “Holding it at a chapel seems ever-so-fitting and oddly convenient that it was the only large reservation space available for the time that we wanted to have it.”
Johnson said she wanted the show to be a space for small artists and designers to feel welcomed and comfortable sharing their art.
One of the artists includes an 11-year-old girl who draws different designs on her iPad. Variant was able to bring in a seamstress that brought the girl’s designs to life, she said.
“A lot of these designers don’t even have a formal website, they don’t even typically sell their things or they’ve only made it for their friends,” she said. “This was just a great space for them to showcase their work to the community.”
Augier said she’s been really impressed by Johnson’s dedication to the show and the amount of work that has been put in in order to make it a success.
“I was blown away by how organized Katie was with all of the intricate details that go into it from lighting, walking, timing, the order of the models, the makeup, the makeup changes and so on and so forth,” she said. “It’s one of those events where the details matter, and Katie hasn’t overlooked any of those, so I’m super proud of her for that.”
