By Cara Burke
I found I myself bobbing my head to the rhythmic beat, watching through the neon-seeped darkness in wait for the first catwalker in LGB’s STEM Centre PRISM Wearables Fashion show. When they came, in a flood of lights and more tech than I thought could ever be possible on a catwalk, let alone a school one, I was certainly not disappointed! I was amazed by the level of technology – the coding of the robots in time to the music, the lights on people’s outfits and the walks that went beyond human: a robot on a screen walking in time to a person, and of course a hoverboard. It did feel very much like stepping right into the future, and seeing how technology can be used in ways we don’t usually expect.
One of the most interesting things about this show was the number of people involved: something I realised only after watching, but could see in every single little detail of design and code and makeup. Over 70 people helped make this project a reality, with approximately 50 of them being students. I spoke to two of those who worked backstage: Flavia (who worked with makeup), said: “Like some other shows I’ve worked on, backstage is always a bit frantic, but it really ups the energy. It’s really different to the calm models people saw on the runway. I always love working with people backstage because you get to see their excitement and trepidation.” She told me how fun it was to be able to go extreme with the makeup, and not do something that would be considered traditionally pretty. She also told me about how the crowns that we saw on the catwalk were actually 3D printed, which I found amazing! Santiago, who worked with tech, told me that he soldered cable connections to arduinos, which are mini computers which, when programmed accordingly, allowed the lights on people’s clothes to turn on and off and change colour. It was interesting to see how different seemingly unrelated art forms could come together to create such an amazing display of colour and lights.
It was clear to me on that night that the pride in such a project shone through from the entire community of people who worked on it. It was truly wonderful to see the work of so many people, from all over the school and of all ages, and the clear friendship and teamwork of the students, parents, staff, teachers, and everyone else who came together.
The exciting makeup!
Of course we can’t miss out the fantastic dancing robots!
It’s raining men!
Lovely lit up dresses designed and made by students (Y10 and ESP)
We were all blown away by this lovely colourful dance routine!
And of course, the costumes and lights were fantastic….
UV glowing body paint
A robot and his human companion!
A perfect end to a snowy Friday !
