Alex Mcdermott

History with The Curio:  

Alex McDermott (I Am Studios) was one of the distinguished designers featured in our 2024 Fashion Show, “A Celebration of Chicago Style,” and our live model exhibit, “Fashion’s Night Out 2024." Check out the press coverage of "A Celebration of Style 2024" available here.  

Recent News:

Watch Alex McDermott on WGN’s Daytime Chicago this past December and see some of her latest looks on models. Read more about I Am Studios in an October Fashion File piece.

Designer Bio:

Chicago-based fashion designer, Alex McDermott, graduated from the School of the Art Institute in 2022. Since then she has established her brand I Am Studios, specializing in couture formal wear. Alex is heavily inspired by her experience with a disabled body. Parsing through the nuances of chronic pain and translating them through storytelling, each collection is a peek into her reality; a doorway to a story that words fail to describe. Pulling inspiration from armor, science fiction, and the natural world, whilst paying homage to classical tailoring, her work transcends past, present, and future.  

For Chicago Fashion Week 2024's, "A Celebration of Style", *Alex McDermott presented her collection titled “Thread from the Heavens”, exploring the concept of electricity as a unifying force in both nature and technology. McDermott describes electricity as the essential element connecting all things—creation, communication, and life itself. The collection features flowing lines and dynamic structures that symbolize interconnectedness and energy.

McDermott’s design process is deeply narrative-driven. She begins by writing to understand the conceptual world of the collection, using this as a foundation for the designs. Her creations evolve through multiple phases of editing, ensuring that each piece strikes a balance between clarity and mystery, allowing space for personal interpretation. For McDermott, fashion is a journey of discovery, not a finished answer.