Devynn Alston, Contributing Writer
Rachel Nicholas, Contributing Writer
Christian Siriano, a well-known fashion designer who has dressed Lili Reinhart, Jennifer Lopez, and even former First Lady Michelle Obama, will be exhibiting a collection of his work at the Branch Museum of Design starting Jan. 17 — as well as providing a unique opportunity for VCU fashionistas.
The exhibition, “Undeniable,” will showcase Siriano’s red carpet designs and artist Ashley Longshore’s paintings. It will highlight the interconnectivity of the fashion and art worlds.
A self-taught painter, Longshore has built her brand as a powerhouse pop artist. She officially debuted in 2024 during Miami Art Week, addressing themes found in pop culture and collaborating with several celebrities, art houses and designers, according to the Branch Museum’s website.
Before her debut, Longshore appeared in and inspired the fall collection of Siriano’s runway designs in 2019. Her pieces are composed of strong, vibrant women in pop-art fashion, lining the runway, the show ending with her and Siriano walking themselves.
Siriano will also be teaching a fashion drawing workshop for VCU fashion design and enterprise students.
VCU student volunteers have been helping to set up the Branch Museum for the exhibition; a perk for all of their hard labor will be getting a chance to meet Siriano at a private event before the official opening.
“I wanted to volunteer because I wanted to get more opportunities and make more connections in the art world, see the dresses close up and be able to feel the fabric,” third-year fashion student Emory Bartenstein said.
The biggest challenge posed to the volunteers so far was to have Siriano’s designs look the same on mannequins as they did on the celebrities who wore them.
The work includes dressing, painting, constructing and stuffing the figures.
“The whole goal of us stuffing the mannequins and getting the outfits on them is to bring life to them,” said student volunteer Aspen Oracio Lewis. “Because they are moving works of art, but they are stationary, and they are on inanimate objects,” said student volunteer Aspen Oracio Lewis.
Longshore’s work was included as a roundabout way to expand reach, according to Kyle Sargent, the exhibitions and collections manager of the Branch Museum.
The dream of those who work at the Branch Museum, a hidden Richmond gem for fashion, is for the space to become nationally recognized, according to Sargent. Because of that aspiration, choosing VCU students to volunteer was very intentional. The Branch Museum reached out to Siriano’s team directly to secure the exhibition in the river city.
“With VCUarts being the absolute powerhouse that it is, on a national scale, it puts Richmond with the sort of arts education background like SCAD [Savannah College of Art and Design], or RISD [Rhode Island School of Design], despite being a more medium-sized city,” Sargent said.
More information on the exhibition could be found at branchmuseum.org/undeniable/.