The new studios will be larger, have better lighting and include more professional equipment, said Valerie Birk, a fashion merchandising and apparel designs instructor.
“It’s really exciting,” she said. “It will affect them in a really positive way.”
The new studios are in the second floor of the Applied Technology Building, as opposed to the current location in the basement of LaFollette Complex.
Birk said the old studios were similar to “home-economic classes” and have not been renovated in 20 years.
The construction of the fashion studios was funded through the university’s building allotment. Birk said the plan for studio updates has been in the works for many years, but construction began last summer. She said the move took a while due to coordinating where each department would be.
Megan Bright, a junior apparel design major, said she is “stoked” for the new studios.
“The new space is supposed to really facilitate creativity and productivity,” she said. “That kind of support, I think, will really help us grow and really feel like designers.”
Bright described the current studios as “basic,” with white walls and no color or texture in the room.
“We are a talented and passionate bunch, and we need something to say, ‘Apparel design is a science and art,’" she said. “I'm glad to see the university is supporting this craft.”
Birk said the new studios will be a more “user friendly environment” and more accessible for students and their equipment or supplies.
The studios will include industrial sewing machines and more professional equipment. The computers will also have Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Illustrator and pattern-making software.
She said she thinks being tech-savvy and using “modernizing” tools will better prepare students.
Birk advises the fashion design society and has begun planning events for the new studios. The society hopes to invite Ball State alumna Angela Ahrendts, the former CEO of Burberry, and host an open house for other alumni.
She said the fashion department has alumni who have gone on to work for companies such as Calvin Klein, Betsey Johnson and Chico’s. She said she doesn’t believe the university or faculty are aware of the success of the fashion program or how quickly students find jobs after graduating.
Sydney Arledge, a junior marketing and fashion merchandising major, said the update was “much needed.”
“I think [the space] is really beneficial to people in my major,” she said. “It gives us more space to be creative, as well as updated equipment, which will improve the quality of our work.”
She said the current studios are outdated and crowded, and the “workspace has no flow.”
“It was just not an ideal facility for us to work in,” Arledge said. “What we hope to do differently is create an inviting and updated space where everyone has enough room to work."
Birk will be teaching a class in the summer session, Wearable Art, which will spend half of the semester in the new studios.
"With the new labs and facility, I know this will be inspiration for the kids," she said. "There's so much potential for new growth."
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