Get to know: Jean Song
Where is your hometown? Where have you lived?
I was born in New Orleans, Louisiana, and I’ve lived there for most of my life.
Do you have any professional experience?
I don’t really have any professional experience regarding fashion. I haven’t had an internship, and I’m certainly working on that because I want to put myself out there and get that experience.
When did you decide to pursue a career in fashion?
I actually wanted to pursue a career in veterinary medicine, and I had plans to attend Cornell and go to veterinary school, but after working as an intern at an animal hospital during my senior year in high school, I realized that that’s not the path I wanted to take, even though I still have a passion for animals. I knew if I wanted to be happy in life, I had to do something I love, and creating art is what I love, so I did a little bit of soul-searching and realized that I wanted to do something in photography. But after taking photo classes, I realized I wanted to do fashion design, so I switched majors during sophomore year in college, and I’ve been happy with my decision ever since.
What inspires you creatively? Professionally?
I’m always looking on style.com for inspiration and what other designers are working on. Looking at their work pushes me to try and be at their level. But for personal inspiration for creativity, I go on a lot of different artistic websites that share photos, etc. to expand my ideas. But I also get a lot of inspiration just from other people. I enjoy a good conversation where it challenges your perspectives, and I’ve learned many things over the years about myself as a designer and as a person just from sharing ideas with other people.
What are some of the most pressing issues facing today’s fashion designers? Models? Accessory designers?
I think today a lot of designers are competing with each other to innovate something that has never been done before. In the past, every era was known for a certain style of fashion, and you can distinctly pinpoint what era a certain style came from. I think today, however, fashion has been an such eclectic group of styles that our challenge today as designers is to think even further outside the box to create something we’ve never seen before, especially since technology is rapidly evolving – our resources are ever expanding, so we have that advantage.
Where do you see yourself five years from now?
I have hopes to start my own business and expand worldwide. Many people have challenged me in this industry, but it pushes me even further to fight for what I want. They say you can achieve anything if you put your mind to it. If that’s the case, why dream small? I want to dream big for myself and see how far I can really go.
Do you have any advice for future SCAD fashion designers or for those who are preparing to enter the industry?
My advice would be to focus on your goals and what you want for yourself; don’t pay any attention to the naysayers. There will be people who will certainly challenge you and criticize you to no end, but if you really want this, you have to find your own confidence in yourself as a designer and just keep moving forward.
How would you categorize your aesthetic?
I have a very whimsical, ethereal design aesthetic. I am attracted to anything light and airy, and I love designing clothes that make women feel beautiful when they walk around.
Who would be your dream designer to work with?
I admire Elie Saab. He has always been an inspiration to me, and I consider my aesthetic to be very similar to his. His work is so sexy yet elegant at the same time. I look up to him.
When you think about the future of fashion, what do you see?
I think the fashion world has gone through a lot, from couture to fast fashion, and although technology today is rapidly changing, I feel the fashion industry will go back to its roots of slowing down and focusing on the beautiful clothes and not so much the money aspect of it, at least that’s what I hope happens.
