The annual VCUarts Fashion Event is the culmination of creative vision and technical skill for the Department of Fashion Design + Merchandising students. This event, held at the Virginia Museum of Fine Arts (VMFA), features runway show, a window installation, and videography highlighting the original work of emerging design and merchandising talents before an audience of 400+ industry professionals, family, sponsors and community members. Each year, a guiding theme is chosen for the event. The 2026 theme was Synergy, in which combined effort creates a greater total effect than the sum of their individual contributions. This concept is exemplified by the relationship between the work of designers and merchandisers.
A special thank you to the generous supporters of the 2026 fashion event:
Runway Sponsors
Rachel Grove Dalton (B.A. ’05)
Melanie Trent De Schutter (B.F.A. ’78)
Kieran Donahue (B.F.A. ’93) and Joseph Marinucci
Nita Enoch (B.F.A. ’97) and Jack Enoch
Karen Parsons Phillips (B.F.A. ’88) and Family
The Phoenix
The Rock Foundation
Deborah Valentine and Thomas Valentine
Virginia Museum of Fine Arts
Reception Sponsors
Victoria Bleick and Charles Bleick
Reji Carreras (B.F.A. ’70, M.A.Ed. ’80)
Michelle Gluck and John McGurl (M.D. ’93)
Marie Kimmel (B.F.A. ’84)
Pam Royall
Tracy Stallings (B.S. ’85, M.S.H.A. ’95) and Tom Stallings
Marcia Thalhimer and Harry Thalhimer
Fashion Partners
Deidra Arrington (M.B.A. ’09) and Steve Arrington
Lloyd Backstrom and Art Backstrom
Patricia Brown and Robert Bierly
Molly Dodge (B.S. ’89)
Debra Fitzgerald (B.F.A. ’86) and David Fitzgerald
Frances Kahn
Kimberly Guthrie (B.F.A. ’89, M.A.E. ’98)
Carolyn Garner and Thomas Garner
Karen Kelly (B.S. ’96) and Pat Kelly
Sharon Larkins-Pederson
Sophia Li (B.A. ’13)
Sandra Mihaloff and Philip Klaus
Candace Osdene (M.S.W. ’75)
Our Life by Stella’s
Karen Palen and John Palen
Tamara Rabil (B.F.A. ’93) and Albert Rabil
Alexandra and Brock Saunders
Schroder Davis Law Firm, PLC
Gail Schwartz and John Jay Schwartz, 1st Ultimate Ram (B.S. ’69)
The Pink Lady Shop
VCU Women’s Impact Network
Verdalina
Meredith Weiss
Sandra Wilkins (B.F.A. ’72) and Tyrone Wilkins
The VCUarts Fashion Event is supported by the newly established VCUarts Fashion Show Endowment through a generous gift from Kieran Donahue and Joseph Marinucci.