This year’s gala event showcased final year works by Australia’s freshest young design students and was held at Carriageworks in Sydney on Tuesday 8 December 2009.

Three major international brands provided their support for Raffles College of Design and Commerce’s end of year fashion parade – Shu Uemura, Redken and Akira Isogawa.

Prestigious makeup and hair brands Shu Uemura and Redken sent a team of five people to coordinate makeup and hair on the night while notable Australian designer Akira Isogawa presented the award for the best Major Studio Project range. The prize is a two-month internship at the Akira design studio in Surry Hills.

Fashion design graduate Jong Min (Gabriel) Lee took out top honours at the spectacular Graduate Fashion Collections show with his extraordinary “mille-fleurs” dresses and winning the prestigious internship with Akira Isogawa.

Fittingly the theme for this year’s show was “Elemental Forces”, which drew upon Japanese aesthetics and trends in design. The garments were paraded in a series of categories representing water, earth, wind, air and fire. They included couture and deluxe garments for both women and men, ranging from swimwear to knitwear and eveningwear.

Japanese brand Shu Uemura, owned in Australia by L’Oreal, is named after its founder and legendary makeup artist Mr Shu Uemura. For 50 years Shu Uemura have employed a blend of nature, science and art to create avant-garde makeup and a highly respected reputation.

Director of Fashion Design and Marketing at Raffles College, Robert de Giovanni, says “With Redken, the presence of these brands on the night and their decades of expertise made for a highly dynamic and exciting show.”    

The graduate collections are the culmination of a packed academic year for Bachelor of Design students majoring in Fashion Design. The show features final-year work of students from all over NSW and international students, among them many fashion industry “faces to watch’’.