INTERFORM, formerly known as NWA Fashion Week and Arkansas Arts & Fashion, nurtures creative passion and allows fashion artists of all levels to curate their talents with a variety of classes, studio sessions, and events. In 2021, three departments - LEARN, MAKE, and SHOW were established within INTERFORM. By January 2024, the MAKE department transitioned into a for-profit entity named RHIZOME, a subsidiary of INTERFORM that serves to support INTERFORM’s mission through small-batch manufacturing.
INTERFORM offers 3 to 4-month apparel education courses, from basic to advanced, and Fashion Design. The organization prides itself on the range of demographics found at INTERFORM and how one can immerse oneself, recognize and develop their talents, and work in a safe, welcoming space. Basana Chhetri, Vice President of Programming and Community Engagement, says, “When I launched this [LEARN] program, I started with ten Marshallese ladies who wanted to learn sewing. It kept growing. We have students from the Latinx community, Congolese refugees, and all types of demographics.”
INTERFORM hosts about 80 students for regular classes, with an additional 40-50 individuals –including both students and the public – utilizing the open studio hours every week. Robin Wallis Atkinson is the founder and CEO of INTERFORM. “Robin established our style and fashion forum,” says Basana. “INTERFORM is here because of her guidance and vision.” With RHIZOME, you can design your style and easily multiply your production progress. In Show, you have the chance to sell your items in their storefront, Atelier, or feature them in exhibits like NWA Fashion Week and ASSEMBLY, INTERFORM’s art & fashion biennial.
EMERGE, INTERFORM’s Designer Residence program, provides 13 sessions for mentoring local designers, allowing them the opportunity to exhibit their collections at the NWA Fashion Week Fall 2024 at the Fayetteville Library. They recently hosted the annual Teen Fashion Design Bootcamp #4 and also worked with Canopy in hosting workshops in August for Afghani and Syrian women in the first week of August.
“Students bring their own originality,” says Basana. “After that, they start to shine. They know that it’s okay to express whatever they have in mind. They feel safe, and creating that environment is key. People come here for that one place that’s not home and not work. Inclusivity, understanding, and respecting people as who they are is the way to nurture that creativity. One of the reasons why it’s possible is because we don’t charge. Not having that worry, going to a place where you’re welcome, and everything you’ve created becomes yours; that’s what’s most important.”