Eight collections, eight risks: LCI Melbourne at Melbourne Fashion Week

On Friday 23 October, eight LCI Melbourne Fashion & Costume Design students presented their collections on the Student Collections Runway at Melbourne Fashion Week, hosted at Younghusband.

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This image captures a fashion show with a modern, industrial aesthetic. Models walk down a runway surrounded by a metallic structure and screens displaying visuals, under dramatic lighting.

On Friday 23 October, eight LCI Melbourne Fashion & Costume Design students presented their collections on the Student Collections Runway at Melbourne Fashion Week, hosted at Younghusband.

Each collection was a risk, and each was a story only its designer could tell. Every one had guts, a clear identity and attitude, and, underneath it all, hope.

That is what being different by design means at LCI Melbourne. It isn’t a slogan. It’s how we choose to educate. We don’t teach students to play it safe or to copy the industry as it is. We back them to take creative risks, find their own voice, and build the craft and commercial skill to make that voice last. Our degrees are built for the business of creativity, and that business needs people with the courage to think differently.

The runway showed what that looks like:

  • Aaron Freeman turned stagnation and rot into a costume-couture story of growth in The Things We Grew Into.
  • Amelia Hull used puppetry, performance and dance to make fashion an open platform for storytelling in Figment.
  • Charleigh Hack broke secondhand instruments down into garments, a haunting picture of a musical path not taken, in Passio.
  • Claire Moffat drew on her family motto and tartan to turn each garment into a folkloric character in Spero Meliora.
  • Jesslyn Tan used cut-outs, hearts and pleating to explore the invisible threads that connect us in Attached.
  • Owen Demezieres Lepervanche confronted fashion’s waste problem with wool-based and second-hand textiles in The Weight of Waste.
  • Thanh Thanh Hoang Nguyen fused Vietnamese heritage with the rebellious spirit of 1970s New York graffiti in Ink of Two Worlds – Where Heritage Meets Rebellion.
  • Rebecca Turner imagined a guild of insect-inspired female protectors in The Guild.

“Creative courage is choosing to put something of yourself on the line before you know how it will be received,” said Adriano Di Prato, Executive Director, APAC, LCI Education. “These eight designers did exactly that. They didn’t chase the safe answer; they told the truth as they see it, with craft to match. Courage like that is what the creative industries need, and it’s what we’re here to nurture.”

That courage is built in the studio every day. We thank Head of Fashion Darran Arabin-Gander and our fashion faculty, who continually push students beyond the comfortable, and who give them the technical rigour and professional mindset to carry bold ideas to the runway.

We are also delighted that Claire Moffat and Thanh Thanh Hoang Nguyen were named finalists in the M/FW Student Award. To all eight designers: we are immensely proud of you.

If you have a voice that refuses to play it safe, apply to study Fashion & Costume Design at LCI Melbourne and find out how far it can go.

Photo Credits:

  • Header Banner: Gemma Thomas
  • Students’ Collections: Naomi Rahim
Three models showcase avant-garde, post-apocalyptic-inspired outfits on a runway, featuring dramatic textures, faux fur, and unique layering.
Three models are showcasing avant-garde, voluminous white dresses with intricate details on a dark runway, highlighting dramatic and artistic fashion design.
The image displays a fashion show with three models on a runway. The central model wears a voluminous gown with "HOPE" written on it, while the other two models are dressed in matching plaid outfits.
Three models walk down a runway showcasing avant-garde outfits inspired by musical instruments, featuring dramatic silhouettes and vibrant orange accents.
Three models walk the runway in avant-garde outfits. The outfits feature bold colors like red and black, with dramatic headwear and accessories, showcasing a futuristic and edgy fashion aesthetic.
Three models walk down a runway showcasing avant-garde outfits featuring bold graffiti-inspired prints, oversized silhouettes, and transparent outerwear, presenting a vibrant and eclectic fashion statement.
Three models walk the runway, showcasing avant-garde outfits. The central model wears a pinstripe suit with a dramatic cape, while the others are in patterned and camouflage ensembles.
Three models walk down a runway in avant-garde black and white outfits. The central model wears a striking winged top, while the others are in dramatic, structured ensembles.