The art of staging - Fashion show at Burg Namedy Castle

The Trier University of Applied Sciences is also represented at the 5th Trade Symposium on the subject of "design-oriented.acting - the art of staging" in Namedy on the Middle Rhine. The designers from the field of fashion design will present their collections on the catwalk. 

If you want to get closer to the approaches of the fashion designers of the University of Applied Sciences Trier, you first have to stop understanding fashion as a surface phenomenon. Social currents are reflected in the creative minds' desire for expression. This was revealed last Wednesday at Burg Namedy Castle on the Middle Rhine, when the up-and-coming talents from Trier presented their diverse collections as an inspiration to around 150 representatives from the retail trade, politics and creative industries.

The Ministry of Economics, Transport, Agriculture and Viticulture of Rhineland-Palatinate invited to the 5th Trade Symposium under the motto "design-oriented.acting - the art of staging". In this context, State Secretary Daniela Schmitt named the field of fashion design as an example of the innovative potential of the state of Rhineland-Palatinate.

Classical music is played and fashion design students in white kimonos enter the catwalk. They wear drawing pads under their arms and will be drawing freehand for the next 35 minutes, while being inspired by the fashion show, the music and the atmosphere. It's amazing what they catch with a piece of paper, a few pens and a few minutes of time. A few lines and contours are drawn, a few shades determine the drapery, a few accents add the finishing touches. The colours give an insight into the designer's imagination. A lively picture has been created. It is the design of a blue poncho-like throw-on. While they paint, models walk through the Hall of Mirrors at Namedy Castle and present the innovative fashion collections.

The art of staging is not a mere empty phrase here, it is lived with tangible devotion. This is the basis for fashion, says Dirk Wolfes, professor at the University of Applied Sciences in Trier, and in the end it is also the basis for retail. "Emotionality and passion are part of the job," he says. Absolute passion is needed. At times there are over 300 hours of work in the collections. He is fascinated by how much the students are involved. The fashion show was staged and organized by Elvira Kempf, lecturer at Campus Design. Together with the students of fashion design and the department of design, she created this unique fashion event.

The collections on display range from elegant business robes and wedding fashion to long flowing, colourful striped knitted dresses draped with yellow rain jackets.  The oldest shoe factory in Europe - Peter Kaiser Schuhe from Pirmasens - supplemented the outfits with matching shoes as a sponsor. The diversity of the works on display demonstrates the individuality of the budding fashion designers. Fashion cannot be viewed in isolation. It is a conglomerate of clothing, emotions, trends, experiences and bonding. This makes the topic appealing and exciting.

"I think the work of the young designers is great," says hostess and hostess Princess Heide von Hohenzollern. "They still have a free spirit and have not yet been pushed into such narrow paths." The connection between the university and Namedy Castle is close, and several projects have already been realised together. Dirk Wolfes shares their opinion. "Designers are the future: they already know how to link the balancing act between the traditional and the future in their individual expression."