Elisa Palomino, a guest to the May fashion show (and Simon Ungless’s classmate when he was at St. Martins), has just shown her namesake collection in Rome and here are some photos.

Palomino (who also selected six of our students to intern at Diane von Fürstenberg) first made a splash in the fashion industry as the designer behind Moschino’s Cheap & Chic Collections where she developed the whimsical style of their second line. After five years, Elisa Palomino was recruited by John Galliano to work for his own label as well as Dior.

I spy Beppe Modenese in the front row. (He started Milan Fashion Week and was once a guest of the School of Fashion with Oscar de la Renta)

At John Galliano, she was appointed Head of the Studio and during the next eight years helped the fashion house flourish creatively. At Dior, Elisa worked with the “petis mains” at the haute couture ateliers where she helped create real works of art.

Following Galliano, Elisa worked as studio director at Cavalli before moving to New York to become Vice President of Design at Diane von Fürstenberg. Fall 2010 marks the first season of her own label, Elisa Palomino, as well as her debut runway show during New York Fashion Week.

Follow the jump for more pictures and video from when Elisa visited us in May.
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Laura Reilly spotted a diverse array of headgear last week during our many events — take a look at what she captured:

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In addition to the many, many, many awards and internships that Suzy Menkes announced (pictured above) after a stellar graduation fashion show, some of our special guests gave offered internship opportunities to some of our students. Check out who got offered what by whom in the list (and a snazzy slideshow of the recipients) below:

Menswear designer, Patrik Ervell: Anette Nyseth (BFA Fashion Design) and Melody Bainter (BFA Fashion Design).

Ian Hannula and Joe Haller from Nice Collective: Jackie Nguyen (BFA Technical Design) and Ryan Kuan (MFA Merchandising).

Carol Lim and Humberto Leon from Opening Ceremony: Ronnie O. Nery (BFA Knitwear Design), Young Ae Koo (BFA Knitwear), and Alice Spies (BFA Fashion Design).

Elisa Palomino for Diane von Furstenberg: Amelia Statler (BFA Fashion Design), Stephanie Hoffmann (BFA Knitwear Design), Ghazaleh Khalifeh (BFA Fashion Design), Ivy Fu Man Tam (BFA Fashion Design), Eunice Cheng (BFA Fashion and Textile Design), and Yuzuan Cheng (BFA Fashion Design).

Walter Van Beirendonck: Mariah Groves (BFA Industrial Design).

All photos by Randy Brooke

Ghazaleh Khalifeh (BFA Fashion Design) before showing her collection at the graduation fashion show on Thursday, May 6. She was also one of six graduates who snagged an internship with guest of honor, Elisa Palomino for Diane von Furstenberg

Check out more of Laura’s pics in the slideshow:

Photo and words by: Laura Reilly

Click here for more of “Laura’s Lens”

We all know you have been waiting for it — so here it is; the OFFICIAL guest list for our 2010 Fashion Show! And despite some circulating rumors, John Paul Gaultier is not one of the guests. Don’t get us wrong, we do love him, but who started that rumor?

Nonetheless, here is the list. Drum roll please…

An Academy of Art University Honorary Doctorate will be presented to Suzy Menkes, OBE, Chevalier de la Légion d’Honneur, and fashion editor of International Herald Tribune.

Academy of Art University President’s Awards for Excellence will be presented to:
· Julie Chaiken, Bay Area designer and founder of Chaiken Clothing
· Keanan Duffty, designer and author of ‘Rebel Rebel: Anti-Style’ by Rizzoli, 2009
· Patrik Ervell, winner of the 2007 Ecco Domani Award for best men’s wear designer
· Ian Hannula and Joe Haller, Bay Area designers and founders of Nice Collective
· Carol Lim and Humberto Leon, innovative retailers and founders of Opening Ceremony
· Elisa Palomino, women’s wear designer and VP of Design at Diane von Fürstenberg
· Walter Van Beirendonck, men’s wear designer and one of ‘The Antwerp Six’
· Dirk Van Saene, artist, designer and one of ‘The Antwerp Six’

Honored guests will announce internships at the end of the show. Other internships and awards to be announced include Abercrombie & Fitch, BCBG, SURTEX® designext Student Competition, and the Sister City Scholarship Exchange to study abroad in Paris at Studio Berçot and L’Ecole de la Chambre Syndicale de la Couture Parisienne.

That’s quite a guest list, isn’t it? Stay tuned for symposiums and Q&As that you can attend.

In the meantime, check out this snazzy little slideshow of our guests:

Elisa Palomino, the head of studio at Diane von Furstenberg, looked fancy (as usual) at the front row of our show this past weekend.