Fashion: The unifying Miami experience

Miami University’s fashion student organizations are some of the biggest and best places for diverse ideas to flourish on campus.

Miami University Fashion and Design (MUF&D) prides itself on being one of the largest student organizations on campus stating on their website, “Miami University Fashion & Design , [is] Miami University’s largest student organization with over 800+ members… MUF&D is most known for its annual fashion show that is completely student-run and draws in an audience of over 1,100.”

On The Hub, MUF&D lists 891 members, and their Instagram following falls just below 3,000.

Into MUF&D’s Instagram, you will find diverse models in posts and other materials.

In many of the campaign materials you will find photoshoots with a wide range of models in all shots. Most posts are group photos with all unique models where no one looks alike.

With the recent announcement of the annual MUF&D fashion show theme, “Ethereal,” I am anticipating the diverse crowd of clothes and models that will be wearing them. While anyone can model for promotion material for MUF&D, “Icons” for the fashion show go through a rigorous audition process of a headshot and group runway catwalks.

Looking through MUF&D’s reels you will find testimonials from “Icons'' that have been serving as models for the annual fashion show for varying amounts of time. Many of them being diverse and telling about how the organization has been a part of their Miami Journey.

MUF&D consistently recruits diverse “Icons” from all walks of life on campus, making for exciting and vibrant shows.

UP Magazine at Miami is a fashion and lifestyle publication that highlights queer and minority communities.

Ava Shaffer, co-Editor-in-Chief of the magazine, said inspiration for content often comes from marginalized communities.

“A lot of fashion comes from Black and LGTBQ communities,” Shaffer said. “You can never pay too much respect to those communities.”

One area that the organization is particularly proud of is its new model archive system.

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Traditionally, UP keeps archives of either male or female models, but with recent diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) efforts, the organization has made strides to make a non-gendered model archive. This allows gender non-conforming individuals to apply to model for the magazine and be in the archives for future issues.

“As a queer person myself it is important to include stories from queer individuals.” Shaffer said.

“We had a male model cover for the first time in a while who was also wearing makeup,” Shaffer said about UP’s most recent publication, “Reverie.”

The model featured on the front page of “Reverie” is Malcom King who is pictured with heavy blue eyeshadow, a green turtle neck and whimsical lighting highlighting his bold features.

“Reverie” is described as “REVERIE is about exploring the unexplored, traveling farther than you would while awake, hand in hand with other dreamers.” on UP’s website.

The edition featured many diverse models, articles on the Oxford drag community and much more on Miami and Oxford's diverse community.

Fashion organizations continue to be the largest and most diverse group on campus. You will be hard pressed to find one person alike in a fashion organization here on campus.

On the walk of life, we come together with one shared expression– fashion.

morri390@miamioh.edu