NASHVILLE FASHION WEEK 2019 ENDED WITH A BANG!
We did it! Everything about Nashville Fashion Week 2019 was BOLD. We presented four nights of diverse runway shows featuring twenty local and regional designers with our partner OZ Arts Nashville; five Learning Labs, including the live broadcast of our first Sustainable Summit moderated by Fern Mallis; fifty interactive Shop Nashville events all across town; the party of all after parties at Dream Nashville. We had hundreds of models and volunteers, with more supportive and engaged sponsors than ever along with thousands of attendees. We could go on and on about all of the goodness, but we invite you to view the gorgeous images captured by our talented visuals team at NashvilleFashionWeek.com and follow the hashtag #whynfw on social media to see for yourself. Thank you for our biggest, brightest and boldest year yet!
We ended year nine with a very special evening at OZ Arts Nashville that put the Nashville Fashion Forward Fund front and center. Our fifth annual Nashville Fashion Forward Gala and presentation of the Fashion Forward Awards was the perfect punctuation to celebrate and support the resolute, entrepreneurial spirit of our Nashville fashion community following the week-long festivities.
Amos Events and Bright Events designed a BOLD and colorful environment with the perfect touches from Please Be Seated and Oshi Floral Design. Colorful cocktails curated by Titos Handmade Vodka and immersive experiences from CraftCourse and Hi-Fi Media engaged the guests while they mingled. Local artist Tess Ernlenborn was center stage creating live art that utilized the colors pre-selected by our guests. Two of her beautiful paintings were then auctioned off to benefit the Nashville Fashion Forward Fund of The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee.
Guests enjoyed a delicious dinner by G Catering, wine from Love and Exile and spirits from Titos Handmade Vodka, Beefeater London Pink Gin and Jameson Black Barrel.
Nashville Fashion Week co-founders, Connie Cathcart-Richardson and Marcia Masulla welcomed the guests and thanked sponsors and volunteers before turning it over to Amy Fair from The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee to share the mission of the Nashville Fashion Forward Fund. Eric Adler (2015), Maria Silver (2017) and Van Hoang (2018), previous Nashville Fashion Forward Fund recipients each shared in their own words what their award has meant to them to the fashionable crowd.
Guest host Nikki Burdine, anchor of Good Morning Nashville, WKRN, took the mic to emcee the evening and announce the Fashion Forward Awards to this year's recipients. Congratulations to Andrew Clancey (Rising Star), Margaret Ellis (Humanitarian), Claudia Fowler (Fashion Forward), Margo Price (Style Icon), Linda Roberts (Legacy), Sofie Rovenstine (Face of Fashion) and Olia Zavozina (Point of View)! Click HERE to watch each of their gorgeous videos and the Gala photo above for their bios.
2019 is a year that Nashville Fashion Week will not soon forget, however, who's ready for our 10th Anniversary? Planning begins in weeks and we want you to be a part!
One More Way To Support the Nashville Fashion Forward Fund...
SAVE THE DATE! The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee’s The Big Payback is May 2! The goal of this 24-hour, online giving event is simple – inspire Middle Tennesseans to come together, show their pride in their communities, and contribute to support the life-changing work of local nonprofit organizations. This is a great way to show all of Nashville just how much the Nashville Fashion Forward Fund means to you and our fashion community.
The Nashville Fashion Forward Fund is an endowed fund established in 2011 to support the next generation of fashion industry professionals with ties to Middle Tennessee by providing a financial award and resources for experiential professional development opportunities. All proceeds from Nashville Fashion Week benefit the Fund.
Fashion designer Van Hoang is our 2018 Nashville Fashion Forward Fund recipient. A selection committee from the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee selected Hoang from a diverse group of experienced fashion industry applicants.
"I am incredibly honored to be the recipient of this years Nashville Fashion Forward Fund. This award will enable me to attend the Copenhagen Fashion Summit which is a global conference about sustainability in fashion and this opportunity will allow me to learn from top leaders in the field. I hope to bring this knowledge back to Nashville and turn ideas into action.” - Van Hoang, 2018 Nashville Fashion Forward Fund Recipient
Previous Nashville Fashion Forward Fund recipients include apparel designers Maria Silver, Eric Bornhop, Julianna Bass and Lauren Leonard Phelps; fashion photographer Brett Warren; accessory designer Ceri Hoover, and Elise Joseph, founder of Goodwin.
