The IIDA Mid-Atlantic Chapter’s Washington Metro City Center’s 2014 fundraising event — Cosmo Couture — is coming up September 18th at the Artisphere in Arlington. We caught up with Juli Sproules of Fox Architects to dish on this 5th year direct collaboration between local Architecture and Interior Design firms and their manufacturing partners in the Washington DC area, and learn show she and her team will create a garment reflecting their given theme… that will walk down the runway, maybe win an award, and definitely do some good for the community.
“These are [manufacturing partners] that we use on a day to day basis,” explained Sproules, albeit used for a runway show in an entirely different way. “A lot of times its carpet, fabric upholstery, or tile… anything that you use in interiors. This year we’re paired with OFS, to create a wearable garment that’s actually going to walk the runway.”
No stranger to the event, Sproules and members of her team have competed previously, but have their imaginations stretched to the limit each year with a new theme and design direction. For 2014: US Presidents.
“They didn’t narrow it down, so you could literally have gotten any of the Presidents to date,” Sproules told us, “which is scary because some of them are a little obscure… but we got Lyndon B. Johnson, which we’re really excited about because [his Presidency] is a little bit more modern; the 60s are about change. It’s really relevant to today’s world and issues politically that are going on, and pretty cool visuals as well.”
While we’ll have to wait for the big event to see the finished product, Sproules and her team did allow KSM to preview some of their hip handiwork [See video below], all to benefit My Sister’s Place.
“Every year is exciting because its so different — it’s a completely different beast every time. So its an exciting challenge as a designer… and nobody does this half heartedly anymore. These are other top designers thinking and doing creative things, so… no rest!”
Cosmo Couture is a ticketed charitable event, open to the public. For more information, see here.
