By Molly Clark
Vinyl flooring, ceramic tile and sustainable jute are products one might consider when designing a house; not a dress. However, UK alumna and American Society of Interior Designers member Deborah Drury ’86 DES and a handful of UK College of Design students were more than up for the challenge during the 2011 Product Runway fashion show. The event was held by the Louisville/Lexington chapter of the International Interior Design Association.
Benefitting the Dress for Success charity, the competition challenged interior design firms, interior design students and flooring manufacturers to work together to create an outfit from nothing but flooring and finishing materials. Drury and her mentees took home the highest honor of the evening, beating out 17 other teams for “Sleek Sophistication,” a dazzling design made of flooring and finishing products from Johnsonite.
Designing this unusual piece of haute couture was a true collaboration between Drury, owner of Deborah Drury Interior Design in Lexington, and UK College of Design students.
“I am the American Society of Interior Designers professional liaison to the UK School of Interior Design,” says Drury. “I help schedule on and off campus educational meetings for them. I also have had UK interns at my company for years. It is important to give students real world experience. My motto is ‘…mentor the youth in your chosen profession, they are our future.’”
While a student herself at UK in the 1980s, Drury cites Joe Rey-Barreau, associate professor of interior design, as a continual inspiration.
“All of my professors were quite memorable but Joe Rey-Barreau stands out,” she said. “He is still a fabulous speaker by making his lectures educational and entertaining for his students. You can listen to his lectures and continuing education courses for hours. That’s a true gift.”
A true work of art. This dress was compiled of nothing but flooring materials.
