Birmingham Fashion Week (BFW), was a series of annual
fashion week
A fashion week is a fashion industry event, lasting approximately one week, where fashion designers, brands or "houses" display their latest collections in runway fashion shows to buyers and the media. These events influence the upcoming fashion ...
events, held between 2011 and 2016 in
Birmingham, Alabama
Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% fr ...
.
The event showcased three nights of runway shows, featuring both local designers and national brands.
Student Competition
The event included a Rising Design Star competition, for local middle and high school students, Out of 300 submissions, and 60 finalists in its final year.
Winners of the challenge received cash prizes and college scholarship through the
University of Alabama
The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a Public university, public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and la ...
and
Savannah College of Art and Design
Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) is a private nonprofit art school with locations in Savannah, Georgia; Atlanta, Georgia; and Lacoste, France.
Founded in 1978 to provide degrees in programs not yet offered in the southeast of the Unit ...
.
History
The event was founded in 2011 by Heidi Elnora, Jeana Lee Thompson to showcase local fashion talent. Starting as a one night show and later evolving into a three-day event. Notably, model
Madeline Stuart
Madeline Stuart (born 13 November 1996) is an Australian model with Down syndrome. She has appeared on the New York Fashion Week catwalk, and has also walked Paris fashion week, London fashion week, Runway Dubai, Russian fashion week, Mercedes Be ...
, known for being the first professional model with
Down syndrome
Down syndrome or Down's syndrome, also known as trisomy 21, is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of all or part of a third copy of chromosome 21. It is usually associated with physical growth delays, mild to moderate intellectual dis ...
opened the event in 2016.
[{{Cite web , last=Tomberlin , first=Michael , date=2016-08-25 , title=Special international model to kick off Birmingham Fashion Week , url=https://alabamanewscenter.com/2016/08/25/special-international-model-kick-off-birmingham-fashion-week/ , url-status=live , archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230626195844/https://www.alabamanewscenter.com/2016/08/25/special-international-model-kick-off-birmingham-fashion-week/ , archive-date=2023-06-26 , access-date=2023-06-26 , website=Alabama News Center , language=en-US] That same year, at the
Boutwell Memorial Auditorium
Boutwell Memorial Auditorium is a 5,000-seat multi-purpose arena located in Birmingham, Alabama. It was built in 1924 as Birmingham's Municipal Auditorium, on a site near City Hall, facing Capitol Park (now Linn Park).
The building was designed ...
during the finale of the event, co-founder Heidi Elnora revealed that if the event failed to gain new financial backing, that it would not be able to return the following year.
See also
*
List of fashion events
This is the list of fashion weeks/events/ shows held annually or two times a year all around the world. There are five main events in the world: the Paris Fashion Week, Milan Fashion Week, New York Fashion Week, London Fashion Week and Arab Fashio ...
*
List of fashion events in the United States
This is a list of fashion weeks, events and fashion shows held annually or two times a year in the United States. The list is ordered alphabetically.
List
* African Fashion Week Houston
* Aspen Fashion Week
* Atlanta Fashion Week
* Atlanta ...
References
Annual events in Alabama
Events in Alabama
Events in Birmingham, Alabama
Fashion events in the United States
Fashion weeks
2011 establishments in Alabama