BA (Hons) Fashion Design Technology: Womenswear
The inspiration behind this collection is connected to my Italian roots and my childhood memories. Exploring my Catholic heritage as well as religious beliefs and traditional celebrations, allowed me to create a modern and contemporary collection. The aim of my work is to celebrate the value of past memories, indispensable to establish the present and revive the future. The visual imagery I collected is mainly related to the Christian iconography as well as to the elderly people and their attitude to engage with religion in later life. The final outcome is the meeting point of juxtaposing elements: tradition and modernity, fluidity and severity, fragility and strength. The colors are mainly drawn from the Christian iconography and visual representation of the Virgin Mary: the choice of fun, bright and loud shades contributed to the creation of a bold wardrobe composed of voluminous silhouettes and an injected dose of modernity. The visual references I chose for my color palettes belong to a series of images called âinfinita Graciasâ taken from www.flickr.com, a sort of visual collection related to Christian symbols: electric blue, gold, orange, yellow and pastel pink were my main inspiration which enabled me to create an innovative and non-conventional winter palette. The bold and almost three-dimensional silhouettes are the result of my deep interest in structured, complex and detailed garments as well as my fascination of creative and innovative pattern cutting. My passion for collage also helped the creation and development of my garments and in the specific to the creation of the voluminous shoulder line, which is definitely the highlight of my work. The choice of cloths as well as the fabric manipulation helped my collection to reach a modern and contemporary finish line: bright orange and blue cashmere together with shiny stretch silks were emphasized by the addition of topstitching and quilting as well as mink fur details sponsored by Saga Furs. The aim of my final collection is to combine strong awareness in contemporary trends as well as fine technical skills. The revisited craft tradition of the quilting technique together with the exceptional choice of timeless fabrics such as wool cashmere, stretch silks and mink fur satin are the signature of my final work. My ideal customer is an independent and sophisticated woman, ready to present herself to the world in a non-conventional way. The voluminous shapes and intricate topstitching details clearly show a luxurious and exclusive taste. PROFILE Highly creative fashion designer with excellent hand drawing and visual skills. Dynamic and organised team player with well-developed written and verbal communications abilities, capable to quickly adapt within a high-pressured environment. Excellent customer service skills with a background in retail management. EDUCATION 2010 to date: London College of Fashion- London, UK BA in Fashion Design Technology Womenswear 2003-2005: Accademia Altieri- Rome, Italy IT Diploma in Fashion Design and Dressmaking WORK EXPERIENCE August - September 2013: David Koma - London January-August 2012: Richard Nicoll â London UK â Internship July-September 2011: Thomas Tait - London UK - Internship September 2011: Danielle Scutt - London Fashion Week UK ACHIEVEMENTS Lcf BA 2013 Press show candidate Saga Furs â Fur Sponsorship Candidate, Copenhagen, Denmark, 2013 Shortlisted for the BFC portfolio review, 2013 Shortlisted for Marialuisa.com Illustration Competition, 2013 Shortlisted for Nina De York Illustration Competition, 2013 Victoria & Albert Museum â Collection Flux presented at Fashion Festival, London UK, 2012 Shortlisted for "Chloe" competition, 2012 PRESS http://www.robphillipswork.com/LCF-2013 http://www.thefashionconnector.com/designer_showcase/valentina_bio.html#.Ul5pNs24Fug http://carmenprocopiuc.blogspot.co.uk/2013/07/valentina-la-porta.html http://www.flickr.com/photos/73747906@N04/9490015406/ http://schoolhousefrocks.com/2013/09/25/valentina-la-porta/dc0f6cbb338268e8f00b09cdb156f5b2screen/#main http://schoolofreference.blogspot.co.uk/2013_08_01_archive.html http://www.ameliasmagazine.com/tag/valentina-la-porta/ http://www.mydaily.co.uk/2013/07/02/london-college-of-fashion-ba-show-2013/ http://www.vogue.co.uk/fashion/spring-summer-2014/ready-to-wear/london-college-of-fashion-ba/full-length-photos http://www.fashion156.com/daily-blog/london-college-of-fashion-class-of-2013-catwalk-show/ http://www.trendstop.com/members/fashion-trend-stream http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wj1fm39ha-o http://issuu.com/london_college_of_fashion/docs/sdt-annual-2013 https://www.facebook.com/brooomroom?ref=stream http://issuu.com/magbrainstorm/docs/brainstorm11