Buffalo State student Elizabeth Knights presented original pieces of clothing she created for Fredonia
State’s Black Student Union show “Rip the Runway” on April 26.
Knights took advantage of the opportunity to showcase her work after a designer had dropped out last
minute from an earlier show at the University at Buffalo.
“After the (UB) show, there were students in organizations from Fredonia that were there,” she said.
“My assistant Anthony Brown was doing most of the talking and landed the gig for me at Fredonia.”
Knights displayed pieces at Fredonia from previous shows she participated in.
“There are a few pieces for the Fredonia show that I have carried over from past shows with Fashion
Students Association, African American Students Organization, Pan-African Students Organization,
and Runway 5.0, but I have also made new pieces for this show to create a larger line,” she said.
“Every show I have done has had a theme, except the Fredonia show. This show I am able to express
all types of themes in one line, bringing all that I have done and capable of doing to the table, which I
enjoy”
Knights creates many of her own patterns and varies her styling techniques to make pieces that stand
out from the crowd. Denise Needham, a professor in the Fashion and Textile Technology department,
has seen multiple examples of Knights’ work and is impressed.
“I find the results she gets from some of the materials she uses to be very amazing and beautiful,”
Needham said. “She isn’t afraid to get her hands dirty either. Many times she has come to class after
working on her design projects with multicolored hands from the dyes she was using. She truly enjoys
the entire creative process, which is evident in her finished designs.”
The result of Knights’ effort was a resounding success, with plenty of approval from the Fredonia
crowd.
“I thought it was very pretty,” said Samantha Marketell, a Fredonia Student who attended the show. “I
like the flow of the dresses and the colors.”
Pilar Nelson, one of the executive board members of Black Student Union at Fredonia State, was
similarly impressed.
“(Knights’s) work is amazing,” she said. “I like the colors and patterns; it’s very ethnic.”
Knights also designed and presented a line of clothing for Buffalo State’s Fashion and Textile
Technology Department’s fashion show, Runway 6.0, on April 27.
“My pieces for Runway 6.0 this spring (were_ based on their theme, ‘CityBits/CityBytes,” Knights said.
“I created a line based on industrial Buffalo, New York.
“When I researched Buffalo and learned more about its past within industrial aspects, I began to link (a
technique called rust printing,) to the Queen City itself. I rusted my fabric up with various objects, and
then did the dye technique to bring in color.
“This takes about a week.”
She added that she has focused on using recycled materials in her designs, and she hopes to use
these techniques in the future.
Knights wants to attend the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York City after her time at Buffalo
State is over, but the rest of her future is up in the air.
“From there on out I am not sure,” she said. “I know I would like to continue mixing my education in the
fibers department with fashion design.”
Shatai Melvin can be reached by email at melvin.record@live.com.