Process Meets Practice: Columbia鈥檚 School of Fashion Joins Global Biennial in Mallorca, Spain
Selected works by 汤不热视频 BFA fashion students, featured in 鈥淭he Making and Unmaking of Fashion: A Process Archive,鈥 highlight the creative process鈥攆rom first sketch to final look at the 2025 University Arts Biennial in Mallorca. Photos by Gretchen Lee. 汤不热视频 was one of just two U.S. institutions—alongside Princeton University—invited to the 2025 University Arts Biennial, a global exhibition hosted by ADEMA University School in Mallorca, Spain, featuring participants from 21 institutions worldwide.
Columbia’s exhibition, “” challenged traditional ideas of fashion as product. Co-curated by Associate Professor Lauren Peters and Professor and School of Fashion Director Colbey Emmerson Reid, the installation centered on the creative process—showcasing toiles, patterns, sketches, journals, and prototypes created by the BFA Fashion Design class of 2026 in studio courses taught by Peters and Julie Fehler.
“Fashion is a global industry worth trillions, but it's also much more than a business,” Reid says. “We wanted to ruffle the smooth feathers—show visitors the emotional rollercoaster, the hours of labor, and the invisible touch of human hands that shape every design.”
Showcasing Process, Building Connections
Installed on ADEMA’s campus by Peters, Reid, and Fine Arts faculty member Taylor Hokanson, the exhibit stood apart from most Biennial presentations, which were installed by student teams. Hokanson, who spent his Fall 2024 sabbatical at ADEMA, helped build the international connection that brought Columbia to Mallorca.
The Biennial opened with celebrations, panel discussions—including a roundtable on fashion’s cultural role featuring Peters and Reid—and networking with students and faculty from around the world. Columbia’s footprint extended into downtown Palma with an exhibit pairing BFA student Xanthe Sparkman’s finished look and audio recordings of her making process. Visitors explored deeper insights via a companion website, created with photos by Photography student and School of Fashion work study participant Gretchen Lee, accessible through QR codes throughout the gallery.
Fashion’s Global Future
For Reid, showing at the Biennial alongside Princeton and other global schools affirmed what she already believes: “I'm always confident that our students’ talent holds its own against the best in the world. It’s important for others to see that too.”
The experience also sparked conversations about preserving the creative process as part of a designer’s signature. “Process leaves traces—in sketches, fabric scraps, failed experiments. Those often end up in the trash, but they help students see what’s uniquely theirs,” Reid says. “If you can capture and study your process, you can refine it—and know how to jumpstart it when you need to.”
The School of Fashion sees global engagement as key to its mission. “We offer students a local, Chicago-style twist on the global market,” Reid says. “But you can’t know how you stack up until you see what others are doing.”
Columbia was the Biennial’s only fashion exhibitor—a chance to assert fashion’s place within fine arts discourse. Conversations with ADEMA are already underway for future collaborations, including student participation in the 2027 Biennial, faculty exchanges, and a possible joint MFA program.
“Our students care deeply about sustainability and slow fashion,” Reid says. “Mallorca and ADEMA offer ways to explore that, from natural dye practices to regenerative design. This project let us stake out that space together.”
The exhibit remains on view in Mallorca through August.