Photos Courtesy of ImaxTree.

On Thursday, February 9th, men’s wear designers Daniel Silver and Steven Cox debuted the Duckie Brown Fall ’12 Collection at Industria Studios in NYC. The collection featured baggy separates in a variety of plaids and tweeds, layered one on top of the other, perfect for the cold winter months. Cozy fair isle sweaters and knit hats and gloves completed the look. They closed the show with several all-black looks, perfect for the gentlemen whose sense of style is a bit more subversive.

Members of Beyond the Front Row worked as dressers for the second season in a row. Follow the jump for some behind the scenes photos they snapped backstage and a short documentary following the designers! See more…

(Photo Credit: NowFashion.com)

Some of the members from Beyond the Front Row, the School of Fashion’s student club, worked backstage at the Duckie Brown Spring/Summer ’12 show. The designers behind the line, Steven Cox and Daniel Silver, were guests of honor at the Academy of Art University’s Spring Graduation Fashion Show. One of our own students, Lisa Relth, was also an intern at Duckie over the summer. It was so much fun behind the scenes and the collection was amazing!

Follow the jump for some behind the scenes snap-shots! Read more…

In May, Steven Cox and Daniel Silver of Duckie Brown were guests of honor at our Spring Fashion Show. Now, the names behind the innovative menswear label are being added to the ever-growing list of fashion documentaries like Yohji Yamamoto: This is My Dream and Valentino: The Last Emperor.

New York-based filmmaker, Lina Plioplyte takes a look at the duo with her soon-to-be released documentary titled, Guts of Duckie. If we’re not mistaken, this is the first fashion documentary solely dedicated to a menswear label — which is kind of cool.

Take a look at the two teaser trailers below:

Looks pretty darn good.

What are your thoughts on the trailer? Are you excited as us?

William West (left) talks to Andrew Buckler at the Spring Portfolio Review. (Photo credit: Randy Brooke)

In 2007, William West was an online student studying from Atlanta, GA. Last year decided to move to the Bay Area to finish onsite. As he graduated with his M.F.A. this year, William was part of the Portfolio Review before the fashion show where he stood with his work and presented his swatches to guests and industry professionals. One of the guests was Nathalie Rykiel, President and Artistic Director of Sonia Rykiel. Fashion School Daily chatted with William about his encounter with Nathalie:

So, what did Nathalie say to you?

She didn’t really talk too much. I was explaining my process and she kept coming back to one of my designs. She said she really liked it — she liked the colors. She came back to me twice and then asked if I would sell it.

Tell us about the swatch she bought:

I used two different techniques — paper stencil and heat transfer to create the design. I used the colors mustard, orange, cranberry, green and black in horizontal stripes. The season was Resort and my inspiration was a Florida motel in the ’70s.

Any good feedback from the other guests:

Daniel Silver from Duckie Brown gave me good feedback. Most of my collection was silk and he said that he wanted to see more jersey. He liked the colors and we talked about cost efficient printing and techniques. Andrew Buckler said he liked the colors as well and took one of my cards.

What is next for Will West?

I have a few plans that I am working on. I am looking to relocate back East and see where it goes form there.

Will you miss the Bay Area?

The Bay Area is a very beautiful place and people here express themselves freely here. I will miss that a lot. However, I miss the East Coast much more. I enjoy having all four seasons!

You can visit William’s online portfolio at willwest.carbonmade.com. You can also follow him on Twitter:
@willwestly

Steven Cox of Duckie Brown (left) and Lisa Relth. Photo by Randy Brooke

During our San Francisco show, many students were awarded internships from our special guests. Lisa Relth (that’s with an L, not an I) snagged a $5,000 CFDA Scholarship AND an internship with Duckie Brown. We had the chance to chat with her before she went off to work for the popular menswear label.

What was your reaction when you heard from Duckie Brown for a summer internship?

I actually spoke with Daniel (Silver) just after the show, and was really surprised and flattered that he and Steven (Cox) were interested in me. They were a little bit off of my radar since they are primarily menswear, and I do women’s wear. The more I researched their company in the following days, the more I realized that those distinctions are ones that Duckie Brown enjoys blurring a bit.

When do you move to New York?

I plan to be in New York by July 1st.

Other than the internship, what are you most looking forward to doing in New York?

Since I’ll only be there for two months, I’m going to get the very most out of my experience. I’m looking forward to exploring all the neighborhoods, shops, meeting people, good music, and seeing if this is a place I could live more permanently in the future.

Follow the jump to read more.
Read more…

Nathalie Rykiel (right) looks at the work by BFA Fashion and Knitwear major Jannika Lilja.

Nathalie Rykiel & Lola Rykiel, Steven Cox & Daniel Silver of Duckie Brown, and Andrew Buckler & Bram Robinsom (director of wholesale of Andrew Buckler) toured the School of Fashion and visited the studios. They spent time with students reviewing portfolios, projects and sketchbooks to give feedback and help with internship selection.

Take a look at the pic to see them in action (All photos by Randy Brooke):

For more information on our graduation fashion show and events, click here.

Yesterday, 601 Brannan was bustling as a tent sprouted to showcase the collections of our graduating fashion school students. In the evening show, our guests of honor which included Cathy Horyn, Nathalie Rykiel, Yigal Azrouël, Andrew Buckler, Steven Cox & Daniel Silver of Duckie Brown, Christina Neault, and Laure du Pavillon reviewed student portfolios and sat front row to view the collections of our graduating seniors. As an added bonus, International Herald Tribune fashion editor (and last year’s guest of honor) Suzy Menkes made a surprise appearance and sat front row to watch the collections alongside our other guests.

A look by Margaret Yoha. Photo credit: Randy Brooke.

Cathy Horyn wasted no time to write up her experience at our show. This morning, she posted a piece about the collections on her New York Times blog, “On the Runway.” Here’s a snippet:

The Academy of Art has some standout students — among them Margaret Yoha, who managed to find symmetry in Elton John and Genghis Khan; Peter Nguyen; the prints of Darrin George; the designs of Lauren Haut; and Maggie Mo Luo, whose knitwear was selected by Nathalie Rykiel for a top prize.

To read the entire post, click here.

For more information on our graduation fashion show and events, click here.

Founded in 2001 by Steven Cox and Daniel Silver, Duckie Brown is a New York City based menswear designer collection. With a fan following that includes the New York Times, GQ, Barneys New York and the industry’s premier stylists, Duckie Brown has been widely praised for its innovation and wit. As one of the few NYC-based menswear labels winning international attention, Duckie Brown is stocked in stores across the world from New York to London to Tokyo.

In 2006, Duckie Brown received their first accolade with a nomination for the CFDA Perry Ellis New Menswear Award. This was followed in 2007 with a nomination for the CFDA Menswear Designer of the Year, along side Ralph Lauren and Calvin Klein. Also in 2007, Duckie Brown was one of the designers featured at in London at the Victoria & Albert Museum show, New York Fashion Now, a retrospective of up and coming American designers. After the show closed, Duckie Brown was honored by the Victoria & Albert Museum by having one of their outfits become part of the V& A’s permanent collection.

In 2008, Duckie Brown partnered with Florsheim Shoes creating Florsheim by Duckie Brown, a collection of classic fashionable shoes. Currently the shoes are selling around the world including Barneys NY, Neiman Marcus, Brooks Brothers, Saks, Nordstrom, Selfridges, Liberty’s of London and many other stores across America, Europe and Japan.

And finally after many years and at the request of many women, Duckie Brown will launch Mrs. Brown, a collection of women’s knits for Fall 2011.

They Steven and Daniel were nice enough to take some time and answer a couple of questions for Fashion School Daily:

How far in advance do you start working on a collection? Have you begun working on Spring 2012?
Our story is continuous – the last look of one collection becomes the starting point for the next collection. While we are working on one collection we have already begun to think and feel around the next one. There is a continuous flow. The ideas for the Spring 2012 collection started percolating sometime around last November. We have begun making samples for Spring 2012.

Were the CFDA nominations moments when you thought to yourselves that you had “made it” or do these honors increase the pressure of creating the next collection?
We have a very close friend who is always talking about “making it”, so we’ve had many discussions about this subject. What exactly “making it” means is really something that is a day-to-day concept in our opinion. Have you done well today? Have you done your best? Did you push yourself? Being recognized by the fashion community for the work we do is lovely and feels good – but really it’s just a moment in time. What feels really great is doing the work, seeing the samples come back, and seeing our garments on people. The pressure we feel is self-induced. It is not something that comes from the outside world. We want to do better; make a better collection — more interesting collection –  pushing the ideas of menswear.

Follow the jump to read more.

Read more…

Cathy Horyn (left) and Nathalie Rykiel

The School of Fashion will debut collections from graduating students on Thursday, May 5 at the annual Graduation Fashion Show and Awards Ceremony.

Each year, the fashion school honors industry leaders who have made an outstanding contribution to the world of fashion and creates opportunities for guests to interact with students during classroom visits, discussions, and portfolio reviews.

The Degree of Honorary Doctorate from Academy of Art University will be presented to:

• Cathy Horyn, the fashion critic of The New York Times
• Nathalie Rykiel, the president and artistic director of Sonia Rykiel

Academy of Art University President’s Award for Excellence will be presented to:

• Fashion designer Yigal Azrouël
• Fashion designer Andrew Buckler
• Fashion designers Steven Cox and Daniel Silver of Duckie Brown
• Christina Neault, executive producer of IMG Fashion
• Laure du Pavillon, proprietor of Coeur d’enterprise

Previous guests to the School of Fashion include Azzedine Alaïa, Prosper and Martine Assouline, Geoffrey Beene, Rose Marie Bravo, The Honorable Bertrand Delanoë Mayor of Paris, Loulou de la Falaise, Oscar de la Renta, David Downton, Keanan Duffty, Patrik Ervell, James Galanos, Joan Kaner, Humberto Leon and Carol Lim of Opening Ceremony, Antonio Lopez, Fern Mallis, Alexander McQueen, Rosita and Tai Missoni, Isaac Mizrahi, Josie Natori, Elisa Palomino, Zac Posen, Zandra Rhodes CBE, Ralph Rucci, Jeremy Scott, Carla Sozzani, Walter Van Beirendonck, Dirk Van Saene, and Dame Vivienne Westwood DBE, as well as Christophe Girard Director of Fashion Strategy of LVMH Fashion Group, Robin Givhan, and Suzy Menkes.

Stay tuned for more info on our “fashion week” in May!