“If an artist is to maintain his integrity, he must be responsible to himself; he must seek a public which will accept his vision, rather than pervert his vision to fit that public.” Quoting Alexey Brodovitch, a man whose work inspired me to follow the arts as well as fashion to start off my bio seemed just right. My name is Victoria Turcios. I am a student at the Minneapolis Community & Technical College in Minnesota, currently working on certificates in Graphic Design: Print & Web as well as an AFA in the Fine Arts, which I’ll finish up come spring. I’m a returning Style Guru and am thrilled to be a part of the team this fall!
My love for fashion started out early on. I’ve always had a knack for styling outfits first with dolls, then eventually moving on to my friends and family as I grew up. Much of that hasn’t changed, I currently work as a stylist at a Levi’s store and I truly love what I do. Helping people find outfits they feel good in is rewarding; I also like learning about the denim and fashion industry. Working there reminded me of how much fashion truly means to me and pushed me to look for opportunities to connect me to the industry; that’s how I became an intern here at CollegeFashionista and founded Vitalité Design, a personal blog focusing on the strength of design in both art and fashion, with advice on styling as well as a space to share my artwork and adventures.
As far as my personal style goes it is ever-changing; I can wear crop tops one day, and wear oversized sweaters the next, but if I have to fess up to anything, it’s that denim, purses and shoes make up more than half of my closet. I draw inspiration from artwork, the world around me and yes, even Pinterest every now and then, when it comes to how to style my outfits.
You know how they say you can’t have the best of both worlds? I would love to prove that’s not always the case. I’m a creative individual at heart: fine artist, graphic designer, photographer and lover of all things aesthetically pleasing, which includes my love for fashion. The quote from Alexey Brodovitch wasn’t just a random pick, I draw inspiration from his work and time spent as an art director for Harper’s Bazaar where he made his world combining design, fashion and photography quite an amazing one—something I hope do with my future career and endeavors, leaving behind the pressure of picking one of my passions over the other.
Sometimes I feel that Minnesota is like a mini New York with plenty of stylish/creative individuals, and upcoming designers, many of which have reinstated fashion week in our city this year. I can’t wait to share what the Midwest has to offer, so stay tuned for some #RAD articles this fall!
