UTS Bachelor of Design students have scored a prominent place in the prestigious Student Fashion Awards exhibition to open at the Powerhouse Museum on 11 April.

Students to have work represented at the exhibition include Anna Banno, Doreen Chuang, Ty Nguyen, Olga Rodrigues, Sam Docherty and Veronica Wagner.

Due to graduate in May with a major in Fashion and Textile Design, Anna Banno is winner of the New Skin fashion design scholarship sponsored by the Domus Design Academy in Milan and where she will be able to study in the future.

Ms Banno said she had exploited her Italian heritage while researching and creating her award-winning fabric design and had combined past traditions with current trends.

"Italy has influenced my design aesthetics, but my background is only one of the elements that inspire me," she said.

"My immediate environment has an important effect too ­ at UTS we’ve been encouraged to be at the forefront of change, so I’m designing for the future."

Doreen Chuang has drawn inspiration from Chinese philosophy and feng shui to produce designs that convey the human expressions of gentleness, happiness, femininity and creativity.

Her work has already caused a stir, with Sydney manufacturing company Rainer immediately offering her a job after viewing her work at the UTS end-of-year parade.

Co-winner of the title Student of the Year in Fashion and Textiles, Ty Nguyen, has contributed one of her most dramatic creations to the exhibition.

Her bubble coat made out of small hand-dyed silk squares patched together (pictured) is worn over a white "autumn" dress, comprising small strips of hand-dyed orange and yellow organza, which float like falling autumn leaves between layers of white organza.

Student of the Year in Fashion and Digital Arts, Ms Olga Rodrigues produced an interactive fashion CD Rom which had led to an engagement with Rainer developing digital presentations and advertising material for international clients.

Student of the Year in Fashion Journalism, Sam Docherty, will display her magazine Playground — Fashion Before Industry Violation.

Her magazine explores the creative work of students and young designers before they experience the destructive impact of industry and commercialisation.

Fashion and Textile Design student Veronica Wagner, who last year won the Australian finals of the Smirnoff International Fashion Awards, has studied the changing nature of skin and its ability to change and grow, observations shaping her prize-winning exhibit. She has used different types of glue to create textural effects.

The Student Fashion Awards exhibition, on view from 11 April to 24 June, has established a reputation for showcasing promising new talent. The exhibition features the work of award recipients as well as the creations of top final-year students from leading Australian fashion design schools.

See the full story in UTS News online.