Check Out Our Trip To One Of Asia’s Best Arts and Design Universities In Hong Kong

Metroand Metro.Style jetted off to Hong Kong last week to take part in the Savannah College of Art and Design’s (SCAD) annual fashion showcase. Just a few hours away from Manila, this premier creative institute which specializes in fashion, among others, shells out the best local and international talents in the region. With fashion universities sprouting in every corner, we experienced first-hand what makes this campus an institution that it is and the best in its own field.

We spent a day touring the university grounds, talking to the students about their experiences in the campus, which all ended with a night of full-on fashion with Hong Kong elites. Here’s what happened in our day with SCAD Hong Kong.

SCAD Hong Kong was the former North Kowloon Magistracy which was redeveloped to the modern campus that it is now

 

The University

SCAD considers itself to be one university but with four campuses around the world: Savannah, Georgia; Atlanta, Georgia; Lacoste, France; and Hong Kong.  An admission to one is already a passport to experience all four campuses depending on the program you choose and the curriculum that is tailored to your needs.

 

The building boasts of SCAD-made artwork which changes every two years

 

The university library is opened to the public, filled with books about fashion, design, and more 

 

The Hong Kong campus is a special one. Since opening its doors in 2010, the UNESCO award-winning building which was the former North Kowloon Magistracy Building, was transformed into the creative hub that it is today. The five-storey establishment houses the creations of its students and alumni along its halls and main areas—a rotating museum-like showcase, if you may call it, which changes every two years. The exhibitions on the themed halls are 100% SCAD-made and are all ready for purchase. With the original courtroom kept in its original form and some jail cells at the basement, you get a sense of the old and the new, from what it was and what it is now. Truly a well of inspiration for the students.

 

The courtroom was kept in its original condition, which is now used for classes and lectures

 

The university prides itself with diversity. With about 14,000 students and 700 professors, it welcomes students from everywhere around the globe. Just in the Hong Kong campus alone, equal parts local and international students get to have the same learning experience that fuses ancient heritage and Western influence, a trend that is a hot topic at the moment. “It's less about East looking to the West and more about the West looking to the East," Robert Meeder, the SCAD Associate Chair of Fashion Marketing & Management and Luxury & Fashion Management. Gone are the days that fashion is centralized in the main capitals like New York and Paris but more spotlight is given to Asian mega cities like Tokyo, Shanghai, and, now, Hong Kong.

 

One of many collaborations the student got to experience was a streetwear design challenge for Mickey Mouse’s 90^thanniversary

The Programs

As a premier arts and design university, a heavy focus are given to the creative programs. With degrees in more than 40 majors and minors in 75 disciplines across all campuses, there is a place for every creative. At the Hong Kong campus, 22-world class undergraduate and graduate programs in 15 disciplines especially in animation, fashion, and photography are for the taking. Just by merely walking along the campus, we’ve personally met Filipino students taking up fashion courses at SCAD, and there are more of them!

The campus prides itself with world-renowned programs, too. In 2017, The Business of Fashion Global Fashion School Rankings named the SCAD graduate luxury and fashion management program number one in the United States, overall and for long-term value. That and its 99% employment rate for its students make SCAD a top-notch choice for creatives looking to make it in their own field.

 

Award-winning courses, especially in fashion, are brimming with learning experiences for SCAD students

 

“The top-ranked fashion program at SCAD offers a rigorous curriculum structured around principles of design, unbounded creativity and state-of-the-art technology, and this is evident in the latest fashion collections produced at SCAD Hong Kong,” said Mr. Khoi Vo, Vice President for SCAD Hong Kong. “SCAD students are flawlessly prepared for leadership in the dynamic and ultra-competitive global fashion industry.”

With collaborations and design opportunities to work with industry brands like Swarovski, Disney, and Gucci and university visits from designers Guo Pei and Tory Burch, an admission in SCAD is basically a ticket to the world.

 

SCAD alumni with renowned Hong Kong supermodel, Kathy Chow; Brennan Brower, Maria Nava, Cheryl Ma and Tammi Lau 

The Fashion Showcase 2019

After a day of touring the university grounds and learning about the students and its programs, we ended the night with the annual SCAD Fashion Showcase. 52 designs from 20 senior fashion students from all four campuses were highlighted this year in a showcase curated by Michael Fink, the Dean of SCAD School of Fashion. 

The Hong Kong campus was turned into a multi-floor experience with fashion vignettes and tableaus, which culminated with a runway show featuring the all the designs from the exhibit.

 

Hong Kong elites and VIPs were present at the SCAD Fashion Showcase 2019

 

Among the featured students were Cheryl Ma’s “RISE” collection inspired by fungi and its symbolic association with humanity’s adaptability and ability to grow despite adversity. Another is Mexican student Maria Nava’s “Green” which was a futuristic take on German expressionism and 1920s soldier uniform.

 

SCAD student Cheryl Ma’s pieces from her collection “RISE”

 

The showcase was a testament of SCAD Hong Kong’s end product: Students that are ripe to take on the world brimming with years of mentorship and hands-on experienced in their field.

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The Savannah College of Art and Design is at 292 Tai Po Road, Sham Shui Po, Hong Kong. For full programs, visit this link. And for full information about the university, visit SCAD.edu