We speak to promising, recently-graduated fashion students Renee de Guzman, Jessan Macatangay, and Danielle Mangana.

Young talent abounds, flourishing even in the middle of a global pandemic. Studying, no matter what career path one is after, cannot possibly be easy given COVID restrictions, and yet many students have found ways to thrive despite the difficulties &mdash; especially fascinating are the stories of those taking up fashion design, a famously interactive, tactile practice.
So what happens when the classrooms and studios are shut and mentors are restricted to teaching from behind screens? Here, L&rsquo;Officiel&nbsp;speaks to freshly-graduated Filipino designers Renee de Guzman (London College of Fashion), Jessan Macatangay (Central Saint Martins), and Danielle Mangana (SoFA Design Institute) for a glimpse into what it took to power through over a year of online learning, interweaving their stories with photos of the graduation collections they triumphantly produced.

<h4>What's it like attending fashion school during a pandemic? What were the difficulties?&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;</h4>
Danielle: We attend fashion school with the hopes of accessing hands-on instruction and in-person mentoring, along with proper production laboratories. But the way digital fashion school was set up felt more like a self-learning process. Mostly because we were given the freedom to work at our own pace and make do if resources were lacking, I saw the value in self-discipline and resourcefulness. During the first few months, some students started cutting their curtains at home, to use as their main fabric for sewing projects. In place of mannequins, we were allowed to use whatever we could drape our fabrics on &mdash; water bottles, stuffed toys&hellip;you name it.

<h4>Any interesting stories from your experience?&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;</h4>
Renee: One of the most memorable stories I recall was being in a video meeting with my class and our professors. He told us that our current situation is disruptive and that disruption leads to adaptation and, more importantly, innovation. This was one of the messages [we all] carried throughout our course. With that in mind, we had to let go of fashion's traditional methods and embrace the unconventional ones. During our pre-masters, we weren't even permitted to use machines, which pushed me to explore vacuum sealing and silicone, the latter becoming one of the main elements in my grad collection.

<h4>What was the process of producing your graduation collection like, COVID restrictions considered?</h4>

Jessan: The challenges in production revolved mainly around the resources and facilities I needed to make my pieces. Because of the lockdown, the fabric supplier I was working with abruptly closed. Not a single fabric shop in London was open. So, this forced me to find other options, which included ordering white fabric in bulk online then digitally printing on and dyeing them myself. Aside from cloth, I was also using a lot of wood and metal, which I was depending on the school&rsquo;s facilities to manipulate. But because the university closed, I had no access to those workshops to make my final pieces &mdash; I had to work with material scraps and even the chairs I had at home. I had to put them together manually using simple tools I bought online, which I actually enjoyed doing. The process made me realize that this situation completely reflected the concept of my grad collection: finding beauty and power in struggle. It was empowering seeing my final garments come together under these circumstances&hellip;I think CSM found the best alternative way for us to show our collections, through videos produced and creatively directed by us, the designers. It was monumental because it was the very first time the school had a digital fashion show and everyone was eager to see it."

<h4>Let's talk about your grad collection. What were your inspirations for it?&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;</h4>
Renee: For several years, I've questioned why I have epilepsy. I&rsquo;ve now realized that my lifelong goal is to raise epilepsy awareness as a fashion designer; more importantly, I also aspire to create a safe space for individuals living with epilepsy so they can be heard. My collection revolves around the sense of time travel, the concept of falling, repetitive movements, and the idea of slow-motion, elements taken from an epileptic fit I had back in May 2016. Aside from that, I also looked into the stroboscopic photography of Eliot Elisofon and Susan Aldworth's Out of the Blue exhibit, which focused on 106 different epilepsy stories. Lavender is the flower symbolizing epilepsy awareness &mdash; this became a significant part of my collection&rsquo;s color scheme. Because of the pandemic, I was also driven to explore more unusual textiles, which led me to create my own silicone-based material. Trapping lavender blooms in between fabrics, tailoring, and multiple layers became the center of my collection.

Danielle: [This collection] took a lot of introspection, and it circled around what I felt during the [pandemic]. As a control freak myself, I felt uneasy trying to accept that this situation we&rsquo;re in is open-ended. Nobody knows what will happen next. So the unnecessary thoughts went on and on; in the end, I figured that the only thing I could control is how I react to things. The collection&rsquo;s story is about me getting rid of my constricting mindset and finally accepting myself fully for who I am.

Jessan: My initial reference was a book of Melanie Bonajo&rsquo;s photography, where she wrapped up and trapped a woman with a heavy load of everyday household objects, representing [the weight of] a mother&rsquo;s daily housework. From there, I used a chair to represent struggle for this project. When you think of it, a chair is actually made for us to rest on, but when you put it in a different position on the body, you give it an opposite power. It becomes uncomfortable, heavy, painful. Like the woman in Bonajo&rsquo;s photos, everyone has a struggle. That is unavoidable. For me, the solution is finding beauty in the struggle.

What Is It Like Attending Fashion School During a Pandemic?

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