Black on Black
Brocade dress, €500, made to order, Sara-Kate Swan. Tights, model's own.
More photos:Monday July 27 2009
One of the most enjoyable shows I attended last year was the 70th anniversary of the Grafton Academy where we saw the work of past graduates, ranging from the great Nellie Mulcahy, who spends her retirement giving talks in schools, to the international glamour of Ib Jorgensen and Quin & Donnelly
This year is set to be another great year. Recent graduates Sean Byrne and John McCormack are in The Design Centre, while Kate & Ava are stocked nationwide in boutiques such as Seagreen. Several graduates were hits in A|wear’s Attic, and some are now in Powerscourt Townhouse Centre’s The Loft. Rachel Mackey has launched her strongest collection yet, while, 30 years on, Paul Costelloe is enjoying a revival.
Today, we feature the work of Sara-Kate Swan, Sean Byrne and Evelyn Rouiller, who all met at the Grafton. In the long term, each of them wants to do different things, but right now they have worked together to create a unique, collaborative range.
The Grafton Academy training is three years long and costs approximately €5,300. But you can take short, intensive trial courses of one or two weeks in the summer, or one or three months in the winter.
“Industry is important,” Suzanne Marr, academy head, explains. “You need a good practical training to succeed in the fashion industry. You need to know how to cut, make and finish. Right from day one, we’re hands-on, developing skills and abilities. We’re very, very practical. No academia at all. We have fashion illustration and computer skills, including using Illustrator and Photoshop.”
Back in the Thirties, before founding the Grafton Academy, Suzanne’s mother, Pauline Clotworthy, approached Ronald Nesbitt of Arnotts with her drawings. He advised her to go to London and learn to cut and sew. She did. Then she founded a school in Dublin. Such entrepreneurship is its graduates’ calling card.
“I’m very selective,” Suzanne says. “I want only very talented, committed people. It has to be an appropriate career for the person.”
Recently, Paul Costelloe advised young designers to learn to draw well so they can edit a collection before making up costly samples. It is that kind of practical thought process that distinguishes a degree achieved at the Grafton Academy.
“If you wait for grants you won’t achieve anything. We know what we are doing and provide good training for any part of industry. That’s the way we are, and we will stay that way!” says Suzanne
Photography by Maciej Pestka
All clothes featured are by graduates of the Grafton Academy of Dress Designing, class of 2009, 6 Herbert Place, D2,
tel: (01) 676-3653, or see www.graftonacademy.com, or email info@graftonacademy.com
- Constance Harris
