Students of Ottawa’s own Richard Robinson Academy show us what we can expect on Ottawa’s streets in years to come

Siobhan Rollo

Just past the ByWard Market lies a cozy boutique-style building, adorned with what looks like a shop-front for a luxury brand. 

Actually, it’s the Richard Robinson Fashion Design Academy. In its creme-coloured walls, students scurry to take garments off of mannequins, only to dress one another. They take turns lining up in the mirror, each taking their time to apply their makeup to perfectly compliment their garments. 

Tonight is the night that they get to show off their self-made bustiers. 

In an annual assignment, students get to model their own bustier for a brand-solidifying photoshoot. The bustier project requires students to design and hand-make their garments. For some students, becoming a designer is their dream.  

“You know Tom Ford? My name is going to be bigger than Tom Ford,” said first-year student Imi Huey.  

Huey’s work is inspired by a unique fashion concept, called sleeping beauties. Sleeping beauties are works that are designed to be worn once on the runway, and then never again. The point of a sleeping beauty is to be an art piece and is oftentimes too fragile to be worn again. Once worn, the piece is often hung up in a gallery or museum, such as The Metropolitan Museum of Art who had an exhibition in 2024 on sleeping beauties.  

“These are your Marilyn Monroe dresses, your Alexander McQueen butterfly dress, that kind of thing,” said Huey.  

Once finished school, Huey plans on opening her own brand which designs both ready to wear fashions and art pieces. 

“I want to tell a story. So far, I’ve told a lot of my own story here… but I want everyone to be able to see themselves in my clothes.” 

For fellow student Hannah Watanabe, clothes are an expression of inspiration. She takes inspiration from nature and geometry.  

“My inspirations come from a lot of architecture. But also, plants, fruits, bugs and my childhood,” said Watanabe. 

She went on to express that the design for her bustier came from wanting to evoke the feeling of “ethereal.” 

Ethereal was the word of the night, as another designer felt connected to that word when sporting their bustier. Audric Goyette, a drag performer, receives “ethereal” as a compliment for their aesthetic often. 

“My inspiration? I don’t mean to sound edgy, but it’s very dark. It’s very gothic. When I perform, I’ve been called ‘ethereal’ before,” they said. 

The inspiration for Goyette’s piece came from the material of the bustier itself. 

“I liked the fabric, I wanted to make a cohesive look, and this fabric really called to me,” they said. 

They are at fashion school to further their skills as a performer. 

“I’m part of the drag scene. I went to fashion shows in order to learn how to put together looks, and here I am,” Goyette. 

For their instructor, Renee Berezowski, the goal is to treat the academy as a way of finding their place in the industry. 

“I try to guide them as much as possible on figuring out what their goals are. There’s lots to do in the fashion industry, it’s a massive industry,” she said. “So, you know, in the two years that they’re here, we’re really trying to figure out who they are as designers and trying to hone that in.” 

Berezowski has noticed that her students’ goals look differently depending on the person. 

“A lot of them kind of know what they want to do. Whether it becomes a reality or not is a different story,” she said.  

The night concluded with each student getting their moment of camera time, and being able to leave with professional photos of their garment. 

“It’s a trip. They’re going through a journey… some of them are very focused and come out of the program doing exactly what they came in wanting to do, which is great,” said Berezowski. “A lot of them change, and a lot of them get different aspirations and then move into different avenues of the industry… it’s all awesome.”