As Pratt’s first cohort of MFA Fashion Collection + Communication students approaches graduation this spring, some students are already flourishing in the professional world. Take Peilin Chen, who is complementing their thesis preparations with a part-time Product Development Internship at New York City-based luxury clothing and accessories brand Altuzarra.
“It’s a great experience,” said Chen, who is just a few weeks into their semester-long position. From preparing gloves for an upcoming show and sewing pants to getting a front-row seat to the operations of the company, Chen is already getting incredible hands-on experience in the field. They’re also bringing valuable insight and skills from Pratt’s graduate program to the role.
“A lot of the MFA program is about collaboration—across disciplines, across faculty, and across our peers—and definitely collaboration is such an important part of the fashion design industry. You have to work with everyone on the design team in order to get your product developed,” explained Chen. “What I’ve been learning [at Pratt] is something that’s really valuable and something that definitely applies to this internship.”
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![A model stands against a white wall, wearing an avant-garde outfit made of sheer fabrics. The ensemble includes a layered, translucent top with geometric cutouts and a flowing bottom wrap. They have a short hairstyle and are wearing black high-heeled shoes. The setting appears to be a studio with minimalistic decor.]()
A model wears fashion designed by Peilin Chen, MFA Fashion Collection + Communication ’26 (image courtesy of Peilin Chen) -
![A model stands against a white wall, wearing a layered outfit featuring a sheer black top over a draped gray skirt. The skirt has an asymmetrical hemline and is cinched at the waist with drawstrings. The model wears black high-heeled shoes and has short hair, presenting a neutral expression. The floor is a concrete texture, adding to the minimalist aesthetic of the scene.]()
A model wears fashion designed by Peilin Chen, MFA Fashion Collection + Communication ’26 (image courtesy of Peilin Chen)
With an eye towards sustainability, creativity, and critical thinking, the MFA Fashion program combines craft with social critique. The program was launched in 2024 in order to empower graduates to challenge conventional notions of fashion, positioning it as a powerful tool for communication, social critique, and restorative action. With an emphasis on community, sustainability, and care-filled making, students are working on projects exploring personal history, identity, performance, and the materials we wear every day.
“Our graduates are inspired to take radical positions that question industry norms, using fashion to create care-filled systems, processes, and narratives,” said Chairperson of Fashion Department Lisa Z. Morgan. “The program emphasizes experimentation, contemplative practices, and theoretical analysis, and encourages students to explore key global inquiries such as materiality, sustainability, social justice, and issues at the intersection of identity, race, gender, sexuality, class, and culture.”
For Chen, this interdisciplinary approach provides the freedom for students to explore their own interests, while also taking issues of sustainability and ethics in fashion seriously. “It’s something that’s uniquely Pratt. It allows us to challenge the fashion industry and rethink it as a system.”
Chen’s own design practice embraces sustainability by upcycling preexisting clothing. Their thesis involves deconstructing and reconfiguring gendered garments. “This process of upcycling is not only sustainable, but also allows me to deconstruct the meanings behind each of the garments,” said Chen.
Chen was connected with the internship by Assistant Professor of Fashion Design Brooke Garner, after Chen took Garner’s Studio Technologies course. “I was struck by Peilin’s work ethic and creative practice,” said Garner. “I was thrilled when I learned that a dear friend of mine, the Director of RTW Product Development at Altuzarra, was looking to hire a design intern. I felt confident they would be an excellent fit, both creatively and professionally. I am always happy to connect hardworking students with trusted colleagues, and I was especially pleased to help create this connection for Peilin.”
“We consider the design studio a dynamic and creative space where collaboration and mindful learning thrive. But we also foster an educational experience that has students engaging with intentional and holistic practices locally—in and around NYC,” said Morgan. “By spending time with local artisans, designers, and sustainability advocates, our graduates appreciate the myriad ways that fashion practices and ethical fashion production are not only relational but responsive to cultural narratives and context.”
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Pratt Shows 2026
![Visitor in a hat and layered white clothing views jewelry displayed in a glass case at a crowded indoor design exhibition, with other attendees and booths in the background.]()
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Pratt Shows 2026
![Wide overhead view of a crowded indoor design exhibition with rows of display booths and signage, as visitors walk through aisles beneath a high arched ceiling and hanging installation.]()
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Pratt Shows 2026
![Wide view of an indoor fashion runway show in a large industrial hall, with audience members seated in rows on both sides as a model in a tiered gray gown walks down the runway.]()
