Gabrielle Hennessey
Pleat, meet pretty
By Sam Morgenstern and Madison Schmakel
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Gabrielle Hennessey moved from Andong, South Korea to Pittsgrove, N.J. when she was only 4 years old. The senior fashion design major never intended to study fashion, let alone major in the field at Syracuse University.
Hennessey applied to SU gung-ho for an illustration degree. Only after she arrived on campus did Hennessey realize she had a passion for fashion. "It was sort of an awakening," Hennessey said. "And it felt great because I finally knew that I was doing things according to my own ideas, not someone else's. I knew that although I could succeed doing nearly anything if I put my mind to it, I wanted to be involved in a career where every day would not feel like just going to work."
The international traveler-turned-fashion guru looks to architecture, nature, and history for design inspiration. She idolizes badass designers like Alexander McQueen for his historical versus rocker eclecticism and Anna Sui for her independent spirit. Hennessey follows Miuccia Prada for her impeccable construction and societal ideas. She keeps her eye on avant-garde designers like Yohji Yamamoto and his daughter Limi Feu.
The clothing in her current collection, although inspired by Japanese ghost stories, is anything but transparent. The collection focuses on the role of women in traditional Japanese patriarchal society. The fashion maven wants her clothing to model more general themes of loss, betrayal, and revenge.
"The concept of 'pas de noir' has always been interesting to me," she said. "It is one of those things that reinforces my own belief that there are no absolutes, no black-versus-white divisions. Binarism is boring, and I try to avoid it."
The haunting collection took creative design processes into the beyond. Hennessey drapes fashion fabrics on the form because actual fabric weights are varied, and muslin would have misconstrued the look of the fabrics.
The green strapless dress features an empire waistline with Frank Gehry-esque flowing geometrics down the middle of the dress. Gehry is the master architect of the Guggenheim Bilbao in Spain and the Disney Concert Hall in Los Angeles.
But the construction isn't solely about the models looking fantastic in Hennessey's designs; it's about the pleating and how the dress shapes the body. It is flattering, innovative, and, most importantly, well-constructed.
The mossy earth tones--down to the cream-colored, braided bracelet--add to the look. The espadrilles have multiple crisscrossing straps, the scarf carries a bit of a python coil, and the headwrap completes the outfit for the runway.
While Hennessey continues her education, her style decisions are shaping up. "Now that I have grown up a bit, I can see that my design taste leans more toward a more East Asian way of thinking," she said. "There is beauty in asymmetry and imperfection, and the negative space between clothing and the body is just as important as the outer visible silhouette."
She plans to continue designing, but Hennessey muses that she doesn't want to start here own line yet. "I feel that working with others, especially others who have worked in the industry for a while, will help me become a much better designer," she said.
Check out more designs at http://gabriellehennessey.carbonmade.com