By Samantha Sollitto
For most of my life, I’ve always had an interest in the fashion industry. I enjoy the sense of community I feel from watching content creators post their outfits online for people to review and enjoy or be inspired by. I’ve always believed that fashion is one of the best ways a person can express themselves without having to be openly vocal about what interests them or what makes them unique.
My idea for the photo essay is “Fashion on 23rd Street”. Every day that I’m on campus, I pass tons of students wearing outfits that are unique and different or right on target with whats currently trending. My work would consist of pictures of students (and passerby’s) with captions of what they’re wearing, why they’re wearing it, and what (if anything) does fashion mean to them. I want to know what inspires people to dress the way that they do, whether it be an underlying force or just simply liking something.
In my piece, I’d also like to touch on how the pandemic changed student’s fashion choices. While we were quarantined, I know I became much more expressive with my outfit choices and spent a lot less time caring about what other people thought of my more absurd outfits. I want to know whether or not other people experienced a similar change and how the pandemic might’ve brought them out of their fashion shells.
I will spend time photographing and interviewing students/pedestrians on 23rd street while I am at Baruch. My goal is to get a collection of photos that I feel accurately represents the ever-growing and changing fashion industry.