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a, Features

An evolving brand: Frank and Oak launch a tech-savvy marketing platform

by Sam Pinto on

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 today’s online world of instant access to everything, it’s tough to find a company that’s able to stand out and distinguish itself amongst the vast array of retail brands increasingly focused on web-based sales. However, Montreal-based Frank and Oak has succeeded in this regard, grasping the attention of a tech-savvy, young demographic of 20-35 year old males that appreciate the company’s careful attention to detail and user-friendly website experience. It also doesn’t hurt that Frank and Oak’s trend-setting style has been noted by men’s fashion bibles such as GQ and Esquire.

“The world of retail is [definitely] shifting,” explained Hicham Ratnani, Frank and Oak co-founder and McGill alumnus. “Today our demographic is very active, very connected, and they’re going out for experiences. They’re [also] using mobile all the time [….] The client has very high expectations, whether it’s mobile or web, so we have to deliver on all these platforms.”

According to Ratnani, Frank and Oak, as well as much of the rest of the retail industry, is moving towards an “omni-channel” approach to sales. With this model, Frank and Oak uses as many channels as possible to reach out to its clientele, while at the same time seeking to provide an equal level of service regardless of which one the client chooses. Such platforms go beyond the store front and include online, social media, and mobile options.

“Omni means all, so what they’re doing is […] saying, ‘Okay, we want to use all of the various channels be it online retailing, be it offline, be it brick-and-mortar right at their store,’” said Ralph Cecere, a professor at McGill’s Faculty of Management. “For example, if they’re running a special, [Frank and Oak] wants to push a flannel shirt or something, if you look [it] up on your mobile device [and] I go actually into the store, we’ll get the same info, we’ll get the same price, we’ll get the same promotion, we’ll get the same exposure to the product. They’re trying to reach from all of these different channels.”

Frank and Oak was born online. Ratnani and co-founder Ethan Song constructed a simple yet intricate website with a captivating layout that displayed its own designed and manufactured clothing. Merchandise changes monthly based on crowdsourced design ideas. Customers are asked to sign up as members in order to shop, and to date over 1.5 million have done so.

According to Saurabh Mishra, a marketing professor at Desautels, being an online outlet provides Frank and Oak with a plethora of opportunities that a traditional store cannot compete with, particularly by offering customers a far larger array of product options than a physical outlet could have.

“There are quite a few perks actually [to selling online],” explained Mishra. “One of the big things is that you can offer a lot more variety [that] is not easily possible with brick-and-mortor stores, precisely because stores are limited in terms of how much merchandise they can keep, and proximity to the warehouse becomes an issue. That’s what customers really like—this customized approach.”

Websites don’t require the same investment, overhead costs, rent, or costs of operation that their physical counterparts demand. In addition, online retail provides a company with a significantly larger reach than a brick-and-mortar store in one location does. As a result, the vast majority of Frank and Oak’s sales have been outside of Montreal.

“There is a huge potential [for] online sales and a lot of shopping is done that way, and is [also] a way of reaching out to a greater audience,” Cecere said. “About 70 per cent of their sales [go] to the U.S., and a third of those is in California. So [they’re] Montreal-based and reach out as far out as California, and ship sales out there. Brick-and-mortar is not going to get [that] done.”

a, Student Life

Montreal couture

by Tiffany Le on

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The diversified culture of Montreal offers an ideal setting to create art through fashion. Two Montreal businesses, Kimberly Fletcher and It’s Not Cool It’s Weird (INCIW), work with drastically different crafts, leather, and vintage clothing in Montreal. However, both companies demonstrate that quality, dedication, and passion are key ingredients for the articulation of this form of art and that Montreal is a great setting for its showcase.

Kimberly Fletcher

Kimberly Fletcher is the designer behind Kimberly Fletcher, crafting beautiful leather handbags and accessories at an atelier—what they call a workshop in fashion—in the Plateau. Fletcher graduated from the fashion program at Marie Victorin College in Montreal, and then went on to study in leather school, a subcategory of study within the program dedicated to leather. Here, Fletcher was discovered by Louis Lamarre, the designer behind Territoire Atelier, and was invited to work with him at his leather goods boutique in Outremont. It was here that Fletcher found what would become her passion: Leather handbags and accessories.

“It was a huge opportunity,” Fletcher said. “School will always be there if I want to go back, but this [was] the only chance I [may] have. So I [grabbed] it.”

From there, Fletcher flourished. She was barely 21 years old and was making collections with nearly every designer in the handbag industry, the most notable of which was m0581. m0581 is a well-known company in the city that locally designs and creates handmade leather goods. However, for Fletcher, this meant less creative work, and in the end, she wanted to move on.

“One morning, I decided [that working in someone else’s company] was over [for me],” Fletcher elaborated. “I wanted to start my own business because I was kind of sick of putting these other designers’ names on the product that I made. I [thought to myself] ‘Today is Friday,’ so I quit everything. I went to business school from there and I started my own business.”T   here’s a particular advantage to starting a business in Montreal because permits are low-cost and more accessible. The tourist clientele of Montreal also tends to come from a wealthy, international background. Consequently, they’re also searching for local designers. The market is also seemingly reverting back to small-scale production, which places value on quality, construction, and finesse. This is part of the reason Fletcher chose to have her atelier open to the public.

Fletcher said that she tries to establish an active relationship with her public.

“The mentality of the consumers is amazing,” Fletcher said. “They are very concerned about how people are working. When they come into the atelier and they see the [sewing machines], they are more impressed [….] For them, it’s kind of an attraction. It’s very old school, but I think it’s working.” Apparel and handbags fall into different sectors within the industry in Montreal. According to Fletcher, the seasons operate at a disparate pace. Department-store buyers for handbags don’t all purchase around the same time, as is typical with clothing lines. It’s also quite a smaller circle to run in, as far as competition goes.

“[The designers in the leather goods industry] all have the same suppliers that we go and buy our [leather] skins from,” Fletcher said. “We’re always there around the table talking about our new collections [….] I think [the competition is more within] every team. They believe so much in [their] product [and in] always wanting to be better and better. We are a jungle but we do respect each other’s art.”

INCIW

 The loud and unapologetically unique clothing brand INCIW was created around two years ago by a trio of young designers The eco-friendly group is made up of Maria Mariano, Pascale Cleary, and Catherine Gagnon, who curate vintage pieces to redesign, renew, and sell. Mariano is a former McGill student from the biochemistry department who picked up freelance fashion photography, discovering her love for style and design. Cleary and Gagnon are sisters and models who loved fashion from a young age.

The idea behind INCIW is to make structural changes in the foundation of how fashion is produced. Rather than subscribe to fashion’s fast-paced production using new materials that are replaced every season, INCIW wants to slow the industry down to appreciate what already exists. In the long term, this may become the only way for the fashion industry to be sustainable.

“We really love fashion and love to express ourselves in this kind of art form,” Mariano said. “We just kind of wanted to develop it in a different way. We all wanted […] to have a structural change in fashion.” 

Inspired by the underground, quirky vibe of Montreal’s subculture, INCIW created its clothing based on what they see in hte city.

“The diversity [of Montreal]—that’s what I like, that’s what we like,” Cleary said. “I could just sit and watch people passing all day and I could just be fascinated.”

These three ladies manage the entire company, from the creative direction to the finances. Working out of a basement atelier, the three complement each other throughout the entire process.

“I think that’s actually the awesome part about us because we all bring something that the other one is missing, and we’re always having a blast,” Gagnon said. “Together, we’re all getting along so well and our ideas all connect but in a different way. It just brings the magic.”

INCIW’s approach adds a particular value to its clothing that people are seeking at a reasonable price.

“[It] brings back the whole ‘couture’ feeling where it’s, ‘This one jacket is yours, but it’s accessibly yours,’” Mariano said. “It’s almost like you’re kind of buying an art piece.”

Gagnon also said that materials from the past tend to be better quality. 

“Nowadays, we feel like everything is made cheap, made on purpose to break and re-buy,” Gagnon added. “That doesn’t go with our vision. Our vision is very great quality stuff and the production is just for you [….] It can just last long, forever.”

Vintage fashion is sometimes misunderstood because it branches off into so many sub-categories. There’s a sector of restored vintage clothing where any type of stylistic reworking is strictly forbidden. Often, they cater to a very specific aesthetic or era. INCIW opted for a more artistic direction while taking advantage of the superior quality of old textiles. Because of this, INCIW does not necessarily follow seasons in fashion, but is instead constantly creating new pieces.

“We have a lot of creativity, so we want to add something, modernize what’s old and make it new,” Cleary said. “We take risks.” 

Montreal cultivating local fashion designers

 

H owever, the transition into owning a boutique is a difficult step. Both Kimberly Fletcher and INCIW rely most heavily on their online presence for sales. From an individual business website to third-party websites like Etsy and Depop, the Internet is a growing market. The costs of owning a fashion business are also high; from paying for a studio to buying materials, to renting a space—it requires an exuberant amount of money.

“[A third-party web-seller] is more accessible at first,” Cleary said. “Accessible in the sense that the structure is there, it’s known already, [and] there are people doing it.”

For Fletcher, selling online before opening a physical shop was also about getting to know the customer.

“I wanted to be sure the product was good enough for the market,” she said. “I wanted to test the price, the quality, and know what the customer was thinking. When you’re in the business, you have to respect every step [….] So at first, this is the reason why I just wanted to start slower and put my name out there and the product, and then I will be ready to go onto the next step.”

Last year was big for Fletcher. She produced all the accessories that accompanied Philippe Bubuc’s collection down the runway. Bubuc recently won the 2015 Menswear Designer-of-the-Year award at the Canadian Arts and Fashion Awards.

“[Bubuc] told me, ‘Every year I will come back to you because I love the quality,’” Fletcher said. “To be acknowledged by someone [who] is bigger than you is always huge.”

For both of these companies, fashion is more than just an industry. It’s a form of art that is the basis of human interaction. The precision, care, and dedication afforded to each and every piece does make a difference—not only in the products themselves but also in the mentality of the wearer. 

“It’s your armour to the world,” Gagnon said. 

a, Opinion

Commentary: Religious education and the pursuit of secularism in Quebec

by Ryan Kipp on

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In the latest addition to the debate on secularism in Quebec, the Supreme Court of Canada ruled last Thursday to allow Loyola High School to teach its students about religion, ethics, and religious culture from a Catholic perspective. The Court decided that the provincial government’s refusal to grant the school’s request to do so constituted an infringement on religious freedom. So long as it satisfies the province’s requirement to teach the doctrines and beliefs of other religions to students “objectively and respectfully,” Loyola will be allowed to replace the faith-neutral Ethics and Religious Culture (ERC) course mandated by the province with an equivalent program amended to emphasize the school’s Catholic ties.

Since its adoption, the program has attracted controversy. Although the precedent set by Thursday’s ruling will grant denominational schools greater autonomy with regards to religious education, it does not imply that the ERC is a questionable or restrictive program, nor does it represent a setback in Quebec’s goal of societal secularism. By making Loyola’s exemption from the ERC contingent upon respectful, objective teaching of other faiths in the classroom, the Court’s ruling is a necessary compromise for balancing Quebec’s goal of secularism with religious tolerance.

The ERC was made mandatory in 2008 for all elementary and high schools, public and private. It stresses a strict policy of faith-neutrality to ensure that students are taught about the beliefs and ethics of world religions, as well as Quebec’s religious heritage, in a respectful, unbiased way.

Loyola’s appeal regarding the ERC is the second of its kind to face the Supreme Court since 2008. In 2012, a Catholic couple sought the exemption of their sons from the program on the grounds that it interfered with their ability to educate their children about their faith, thereby infringing on their religious freedom. Although it was ultimately denied, the fact that the request was raised in the first place and made it to the Supreme Court calls into question the feasibility of promoting religious tolerance and respect through the education system. The problem, however, does not lie with the educational system. It lies with citizens who not only refuse to educate themselves, but see the education of their children about the beliefs of their fellow citizens as a violation of their freedom.

A secular society is not one that extinguishes religion, but one that balances respect for religious differences with secular values.

Some people, like those who belong to the Mouvement laique québécois (Quebec Secular Movement) deny that religion deserves any place in curriculum at all. A secular society, though, is not one that extinguishes religion, but one that balances respect for religious differences with secular values. The point of religious education is not just to inform students about the world’s various religions, but to explore how belief in general functions in human society. While religious study may not be necessary for empathy or mutual respect, the role that religion has played in human conflict throughout history, and its continued prevalence in an increasingly multicultural society, make religious study an important part of academic and social education.

On the other end of the religious spectrum, McGill Religious Studies professor Dr. Douglas Farrow, for example, has condemned the ERC as “dangerous” because it introduces students to non-Catholic beliefs and pluralistic value systems. While he maintains that he is not against multi-religious education, it is difficult to believe him when, to support his condemnation of the ERC, he quotes Pope Leo XII’s statement that “it is necessary to avoid at all costs, as most dangerous, those schools in which all beliefs are welcomed and treated as equal.” According to Farrow, this is just what adoption of the ERC entails; for him, however, it is not a positive sign of cultural inclusivity, but an “onslaught against Christian civilization and quite specifically the Catholic faith.”

Given the ERC’s objectives—promoting critical thinking, teaching that people “all are equal in terms of right and dignity”—criticisms like Farrow’s are worrying, not because they point to any problems with the program, but because they highlight issues present in members of the society it was developed for. Regardless, it is ironic that he should denounce the ERC as a fundamentally opposed to the “Catholic view of spiritual development.” Besides the fact that it is exactly what the ERC was put in place to prevent, religious intolerance is not among the practices Catholicism considers as necessary spiritual development. If the biggest danger the ERC presents is that it might introduce to school children the idea that belief systems other than those of their parents can be valid, or that moral judgments may have grounds outside the “traditional religious and moral commitments” of their household, Quebec should take its chances.

a, Arts & Entertainment, Music

Deep Cuts: Dark undertones

by Jon Herlin on

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“Chainsaw” 

Artist: Ramones

Album: Ramones

Released: February 4, 1976

This song begins with a chainsaw. Jonny Ramone’s heavily distorted, relentless guitar keeps up that chainsaw sound throughout—power chords, power chords, and more power chords—and Joey Ramone’s doo-wop, ooooh-oh-oh vocals don’t even try to disguise the fact that the song is about a gruesome chainsaw murder, which is kind of punk: “Texas Chainsaw massacre/ They took my baby away from me.” What’s even more punk, however, is the next line: “They chopped her up and I don’t care, woah-oh.” 

Carmelita

Artist: Linda Ronstadt

Album: Simple Dreams

Released:  September, 1977

Originally written and performed by Warren Zevon, “Carmelita” has led to numerous covers, but Linda Ronstadt’s is the prettiest. The guitar is reminiscent of mariachi and Ronstadt’s vocals are dreamy and unfocused. It makes for a stark contrast to the lyrics, which follow a desperate junkie as he appeals to his lover (Carmelita) to pull him out of the abyss of heroin withdrawal: “Carmelita, hold me tighter/ I think I’m sinking down/ and I’m all strung out on heroin/ on the outskirts of town.” 

Right Profile

Artist: The Clash

Album: London Calling

Released: December 14, 1979

London Calling is such a masterpiece that this track is easy to overlook. Behind the elaborate horns and reggae/ska/whatever-influenced guitar are some seriously dark lyrics. I don’t really know what they discuss, but its probably something to do with alcoholism and/or drug addiction: “Nembutal numbs it all/ but I prefer alcohol.” Ultimately though, Strummer’s vocals just degrade into “aarpghargahshhhsh.” 

Salad Days

Artist: Mac Demarco

Album: Salad Days

Released: April 1, 2014

The titular track of Mac Demarco’s second album is, in fact, an allusion to Shakespeare: the expression refers to youthful idealism and indiscretion. Demarco, however, the typical slacker that he is, looks back on those days not with regret but with nostalgia. Now he’s just getting old and has to do grown up stuff: “As I’m getting older/ chip up on my shoulder/ rolling through life/ roll over and die.” The guitar is so pleasant, and as a result, so artificial, that it could be from an early Beach Boys record. This dissonance, exploring lyrical authenticity against instrumental artifice, is what Demarco wants to convey. 

Redmen football
a, Men's Varsity, Sports

A decade lost: Rebuilding Redmen football

by Aaron Rose on

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Since the 2005 hazing scandal, Redmen football has experienced a decade of on-field futility. Over the past eight years, the team has had five winless seasons. It’s gone through three coaches in that time span, and frankly, the only thing consistent about the team seems to be their awful record. The team is an anomaly among McGill’s litany of other successful men’s varsity programs. Redmen basketball has been to three consecutive RSEQ finals, the rugby team had won eight consecutive RSEQ Championships up until this year, and both Redmen hockey and lacrosse are perennial conference powerhouses—so what’s wrong with Redmen football?

“When I left the team [in 2013…] I really thought we left the program on the up-and-up,” former Redmen linebacker and Winnipeg Blue Bomber Jesse Briggs said. “We won three games that year, [and] lost another game by a point, which would have gotten us into the playoffs.”

Briggs was one of three players from the 2009 recruiting class drafted to the CFL last year, and teammate Laurent Duvernay-Tardif was also drafted in the sixth round of the 2014 NFL Draft. Unfortunately, only two players from that recruiting class stayed for their fifth years, which has been a recurring issue for the Redmen. Last season, the team only had five seniors on its everyday roster, compared to 33 players in their first year of eligibility.

“It’s kind of been the result of our lack of success in the past years,” newly-appointed Head Coach Ron Hilaire said. “Some players decided not to stay the course [because] they did not believe in the process.”

Zachary Lord and Laurent Duvernay-Tardif
Zachary Lord and Laurent Duvernay Tardif cap off the best Redmen season in a decade (Luke Orlando / McGill Tribune)

For players from outside of Quebec, the transition to RSEQ football can be a dramatic one. The CÉGEP program leaves many out-of-province recruits at a disadvantage in their early years because local players are typically a year older and more physically mature. Recently, these players have given up on the team—deciding to focus on their studies rather than football. For the players from Quebec, many recruits come primarily for football and struggle with the tough academic standards at McGill. The team has been unable to retain these players, as many drop out after their first few years in school.

“I think you have to make sure you get the players who come here for the right reasons,” fifth-year defensive back Zachary Lord said. “If you get a guy who comes here for school, he’s going to stay here to finish his bachelor’s degree [and therefore], he’ll be more inclined to stay here for football.”

That’s easier said than done for the Redmen coaching staff. McGill has rigorous admission standards, and finding players who can play while keeping their GPA up at McGill is no easy task. It’s hard enough for most people to balance four or five courses a week, but imagine trying to manage a normal academic schedule along with anywhere from 32 to 35 hours of football activities a week. It’s no wonder these student-athletes struggle to maintain high grades.

It’s been 12 years since Redmen football’s last winning season, and while it’s probably going to take a few more years before McGill becomes relevant on the CIS football stage, the future does look bright.

“I pulled myself out of sports for a year to see what type of student I would be, and I was a 90s student,” three-time Grey Cup Champion and former Redmen defensive lineman Randy Chevrier said. “The year after, when I went back to [Vanier College] to play football in my last year, […] my academics fell a little bit [.…] When you add the time that it takes to become a good athlete [to] the high [standards] that McGill requires of you to get into certain programs, they will be turning away a lot of people.”

It’ll be no easy task for Hilaire to find those suitable student-athletes for Redmen football. To begin with, the program has been plagued by multiple non-football related scandals over the past decade that have certainly made it much harder to recruit now than it was 20 years ago.

“McGill has to repair some [public relations] with the parents that are considering McGill,” Chevrier said. “Obviously there have been some incidents in the last 10 years […] that have cast a negative light on McGill as an option for the parents of student-athletes.”

McGill has recently intensified its recruiting efforts, following the trend of other Canadian universities by scouting out prospective athletes in their sophomore and junior years of high school.

“[We] recruit the whole year,” Lord said. “Not only [student athletes] in their last year of high school, but you’ve got to recruit them two or three years in advance.”

Even though the football team might not be the most attractive program in Canada, Hilaire has tried to stress the importance and magnitude of getting a McGill education as a selling point.

“At the end of the day, I want all our players to understand that football is an opportunity­—it’s not a career,” Hilaire explained. “So few of [them] will be able to play at the CFL or the NFL level, so the opportunity to get a top-notch education at McGill […] is priceless.”

Redmen Football's iconic helmet (cisfootball.org)
Redmen Football's iconic helmet (cisfootball.org)

In the past, the Redmen focused on recruiting French-Canadian athletes because the CÉGEP program produces athletes a year older than the rest of Canada. Unfortunately, the recent success of other local programs—the Montreal Carabins won this year’s Vanier Cup and the Laval Rouge et Or are undoubtedly the top program in the country—has increased the competition for high-level prospects from the province, and McGill has had to look elsewhere for talent.

“I think if we have a good balance of recruiting the top student athletes from Quebec, across the nation, and in the U.S., [then] we can be very competitive,” Hilaire said. “We just have to put the work in the right areas.”

Part of this process is going to have to fall into the hands of Redmen alumni. Over the years, a significant number of Redmen football players have gone on to become teachers. Last year’s team included 22 players enroled in an education program. When these players graduate, they often become physical education teachers and football coaches in their local communities.

“A lot of football players, especially at McGill, [are] in the physical education program,” Chevrier said. “[The] guys [who] graduated with me 15 years ago have gone on to become teachers in their hometowns, [and] a lot of them are involved in coaching. These are the guys that need to reconnect with the team in order to identify blue-chip McGill candidates—kids [who] can get into a school with good grades [and] can play football at a high level.”

It’s been 12 years since Redmen football’s last winning season; and while it’s probably going to take a few more years before McGill becomes relevant on the CIS football stage, the future does look bright. With a year of experience under their belts, the rookies who were thrown into the fire last year will return looking to improve after a disappointing season. The team has already started indoor workouts, and according to Hilaire, the team looks better than ever.

“I’ve never seen the team like this since I’ve been here,” Hilaire said."[Linebacker Karl Forgues won defensive Rookie-of-the-Year in the RSEQ, so he’ll be back. We’ve [also] made some changes on the offensive side of the ball—I recently hired a new offensive coordinator [Benoit Groulx]; he has a great vision of the game, and was a great football player himself."

It’s not going to be easy for Hilaire to turn around the downtrodden Redmen, but it’s certainly not unprecedented. In 2002, the Carabins went 0-8. Just two years later, they went undefeated, winning the Quebec University Football League.

“Success for me is going out there and being competitive every single game, never giving up, never quitting,” Hilaire said. “It’s all going to be a process. We’re not going to try and find shortcuts. We’re going to work at being better every single week and every single day. If we do that as a team, I think we can only grow and learn from our wins as well as our losses.”

a, Baseball, Sports

MLB Season Preview 2015

by Mayaz Alam, Wyatt Fine-Gagné, Anthony Snell, Elie Waitzer on

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Screen Shot 2015-03-31 at 12.31.01 AM american league baseballThe McGill Tribune sports team gives its annual MLB season preview.

 

a, Campus Spotlight, Student Life

Campus Spotlight: SynesthASIA

by Chloe Lau on

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This past Friday, March 27, SynesthASIA hosted its seventh annual charity fashion show at the Gallery Gora Montreal for Free the Children in rural China. Brooke Schwartz, co-director and U2 Arts student believes that the directors’ aspiration for the show, which debuted in 2009 has been consistent throughout the years.

“It seems like from talking to past directors, the motivation behind [SynesthASIA] is pretty unanimous, [which is] that we’re all interested in bringing together this Montreal and McGill spirit in art while at the same time benefiting a better cause,” Schwartz said.

After two years of working on SynesthASIA, Schwartz has considered a very well-rounded interpretation of what the group represents.

“SynesthASIA’s goal has always been poverty alleviation through various means,” Schwartz said. “This translates into raising money for vulnerable populations, destroyed communities, the improvement of education, and so much more depending on the executive team behind the work.”

Although SynesthASIA always donates to a charity based in Asia, Schwartz believes the motivation behind selecting specific charities as varying, specifying the executive’s team relation with students in rural China as a particularly influential factor for this year’s choice. 

“This year, we agreed on a Free the Children project that would help build a school with running water in rural China upon learning about the gap in education opportunities between rural and urban China,” Schwartz said. “It’s a lesser-known issue we all felt passionate about, being students ourselves.”

Charity liaisons Charlotte Moores, U2 Arts, and Joanna PineDa, U1 Science, spearheaded the selection of the charity for this year. According to Pina, Free the Children is a sustainable project. 

“Free the Children had similar goals in mind [to SynesthASIA] in terms of education in Asia,” PineDa said. “[They have projects including] the training of teachers and building three to five schoolrooms [… as well as] the distribution of school supplies [and] libraries.” 

According to Schwartz, Free the Children is a well-thought out initiative. She cited the inclusion of running water in the schoolroom initiative as an example.

“I think the working water part was the most interesting because we thought that was an aspect of past projects that we haven’t necessarily heard,” Schwartz said. 

One feature of the fashion show that distinguishes SynesthASIA from the many fashion shows in the McGill community each year is that the models do not simply walk down the runway—they also dance. Student designer Claire Peng, U2 Arts, said that the dancing helps to showcase the hard work that she has put into her designs.

“Sometimes there are certain items that I’ve made that I feel less confident about; but then the models really rock it and they can rock it a lot more [dancing] than when they just walk,” she said. “That added effort helps a lot in making it shine.”

Not only does the dancing help feature the designs, the upbeat music and high-energy dancing ensured that there were no dull moments during the show. First-time show attendee Alex Lei, U0 Arts, said that the added dancing down the runway brought a special dimension to the show.

“The combination of choreography and fashion was unique and new,” Lei said.

Many participants shared this sentiment and agreed that the dancing and choreography included in SynesthASIA  set it apart from other fashion shows. SynesthASIA co-director Hana Bell said that this unique facet of the show is an integral part of SynesthASIA’s identity.

“About four or five years ago, the dancing started,” Bell said. “[SynesthASIA] began as a regular fashion show, and recently, it’s been getting more and more choreographed and because that sets us apart from other fashion shows,  we’ve been embracing it a lot more.”

However, incorporating dancing and choreography meant many rehearsals. After all the long hours coordinating this show with the executive team, Bell shared her personal show highlights.

“My favourite part is the end of the show—after we’ve seen it all come together and we’ve been so nervous for hours beforehand about it running smoothly, and afterwards it’s just so amazing,” Bell said. 

Schwartz also shared her sentiments on her favourite moment in the show.

“I think my favourite part is the beginning of the show, which always makes me cry,” Schwartz said. “The beginning of the show, seeing everybody on stage for that […] first time at the same exact time is just too surreal for me and I feel very humbled that I helped put this together.”

a, Student Life, Student of the Week

Student of the Week: Susan Wang

by Saloni Singh on

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Susan Wang, a U3 physiology major, is deeply passionate about helping others. Whether it is through pursuing a career in medicine, sharing her artistic talents, or connecting with new people, it is clear that building meaningful relationships is an integral part of her life. While completing medical school applications, Wang has found creative ways to get away from the stress of school by being actively involved in the McGill and greater Montreal community.

Wang is currently the VP External of the Sketching Club. As McGill’s only visual arts student organization, the Sketching Club holds weekly events such as art shows, regular nude drawing sessions with student models, and field trips. This week, the club will be attending the International Festival of Films on Art in Montreal. Wang has also recently taken up graphic design—she designs posters, flyers, business cards, and logos for various businesses and organizations. Despite devoting so much time to it, she sees art simply as a way to de-stress and relax.

“I love art and it’s a great hobby, but in terms of work, I don’t want to pursue it,” Wang said. “I think when you put pressure on a hobby, it becomes less of a hobby, more of work.”

Interested in helping the elderly, Wang currently volunteers at Fulford House, a retirement home in Montreal. She has found a unique way to combine this with her love for drawing. During the weekly sessions, she often spends time drawing portraits of the 100-year-old woman she visits in order to connect with her better.

“It’s really meaningful because you’re able to sit down with someone and just look at them,” Wang said. “For somebody in a retirement home, they don’t get looked at very often. But to have an hour of time where you’re just staring at them and acknowledging them, it makes a huge difference.”

Furthermore, she emphasized the importance of medical issues such as palliative care. According to Wang, it is important that people are informed about how their lives should end, and what options are available to them. In the future, she hopes to work with the elderly, or possibly in oncology.

Her love for helping others also manifests in the various teaching opportunities she has undertaken. Wang works with The Homework Zone, where she teaches elementary school-level reading and math to children. She is also involved with Freshman Interest Groups, where she talks to students about careers in science and what to expect at McGill. This summer, Wang will be teaching English to young children in China, where she hopes to get in touch with her roots and improve her own language skills.

While Wang’s time at McGill is coming to an end, the bonds she has created during her time in Montreal, as well as the meaningful interactions she has built with various individuals has made the university experience extremely worthwhile for her.

“I think a school is defined by its people more than by its buildings or programs,” Wang said. “I hope that through these experiences, I’ve been able to [bring] new perspectives on different things so people can take that and go wherever they want with it.”

 

McGill Tribune: McGill Tribune: What is your favourite place at McGill?

 

Susan Wang: Second floor of the Law Library. It’s like my home away from home.

 

MT: If you could only listen to one song for the rest of your life, which would it be?

 

SW: I have my phases. Recently I’m really into K Pop, so I guess it would be “You and I” by Ailee.

 

MT: If someone wrote a book about your life, what would it be called?

 

SW: I think it would be “She thought she could, so she did.” This quote has always stuck with me.

 

MT: Which character do you most identify with?

 

SW: I don’t personally identify with her, but people tell me I look like Mulan.

 

MT: What is your favourite word?

 

SW: It’s not a complicated word, but I just really like “crisps.” 

a, Science & Technology

Mexico’s Dark Knight

by Chloe Nevitt on

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The Redpath Museum offered a screening of the documentary The Bat Man of Mexico this past Sunday, inviting viewers deep into the Mexican wilderness. The documentary features Mexican ecologist Rodrigo Medellin and his passion: Bats. Medellin is personally saving tequila, one bat at a time. While the link between tequila and bats is not immediately clear, the existence of one relies heavily on the existence of the other. 

“[Bats] pollinate the agaves, which is the plant from which we extract tequila,” explained Medellin. “So no bats [means] no tequila.”

When considering bats, Medellin’s specialty is the lesser long-nosed bat, a medium-sized bat found in Central and North America. His efforts in preserving the habitat and populations of the lesser long-nosed bat won him worldwide attention and recognition. In 2012, Rodrigo was awarded the Whitley Gold Award for his work. This event, Medellin explained, is what catalyzed the production of The Bat Man of Mexico.

“During the ceremony, I [had] the incredible honour of meeting David Attenborough and spending two golden hours […] talking to him,” Medellin said. “At the end of those two hours, he said, ‘I don’t have any more power in BBC, but whatever little power I have left, I’m going to invest in doing a documentary with you.’” 

Attenborough narrates Medellin’s story, and even managed to make wading through guano—bat excrement—seem delightful. But as the story progressed, the initial curiosity about this man and his bats evolved into something much deeper: Medellin’s love for the lesser long-nosed bat was incredibly contagious.  

Understanding and studying bats involves following them into their habitat; caves. Viewers are brought deep inside the caves, and thanks to cameras equipped with infrared and high-speed technologies, the experience is startlingly real. It is only when we are deep inside these caves, however, that the extent of Medellin’s passion is witnessed. Here, while surrounded by cockroaches, snakes, and obviously, bats, he is at his happiest. 

“The peacefulness in here is really overwhelming, it’s really nice,” he says in The Bat Man of Mexico, as he is surrounded by hundreds of bats flying over his head. “The only sound around you [is] the bats flying around you. I could just lie here and take a nap and it’d be a very nice nap.”

The curiosities possessed by these bats, while seemingly random, serve a very distinct purpose. Their heads, characteristic snouts, and tongues, are ideal for eating the nectar from agave flowers—the perfect key to a complex lock. After licking out the nectar, the bat flies off, completely covered in pollen. This bat will then visit another plant to feed off of, completing the process of pollination. The process is well-known and deceptively easy; in the U.S., if humans were to replace bees as pollinators, the annual cost would be $90 trillion.

While the figure is less when applied to bats, the idea is the same, and considering that over 500 species of flowers rely on bats for their pollination—including the beloved agave—preserving their existence is paramount. 

Relative to honeybees, garnering support for bats proves to be a more challenging problem. Especially in Mexico, some bats, like vampire bats, are not only considered pests—spreading diseases and damaging crops—but they are also frequently stigmatized by myths that are hundreds of years old. But this is a challenge Medellin is willing to meet.

 “All I want is for people to get the right information about bats,” explained Medellin. “If that entails [the people of Mexico] calling me the Bat Man, so be it, I am the Bat Man.” 

a, Arts & Entertainment

Earl Sweatshirt – I Don’t Like Shit, I Don’t Go Outside

by Campbell McClintock on

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“I’ve never been behind myself this much,” Los Angeles-based rapper, producer, and Odd Future member Earl Sweatshirt said about his second LP, I Don’t Like Shit, I Don’t Go Outside.  However, Earl’s confidence is more self-effacing and anti-social than Kendrick Lamar’s self-love anthem “i” or Drake’s grocery list of achievements “Started from the Bottom.” Rather, Earl has found his voice in a dimly lit corner several dimensions away from the spotlight.

The album’s opening track, “Huey,” immediately one-ups the self-doubting lyrical drawl of Earl’s first LP Doris (2013).  He’s not here to waste time talking about critics who “pretend to get it”—he’s amping up to spend another day alone, preferring the melancholy of isolation to the overwhelming distractions of the outside world.  On “Mantra” and “Faucet,” Earl articulates the logic of his solitary tendencies—his fame has catalyzed countless breakups, turning friends into enemies and enemies into friends.  For Earl, the unavoidable ills of relationships only get in the way of more important, more existential matters.

Over the course of the album, Earl’s beats recede deeper into a cavernous darkness. He drenches his snares and hi-hats with the sludgy reverb of an abandoned factory, punctuating their low frequency drone with chopped-up jazz chords and detuned guitars. The album’s aesthetic is best encapsulated in the Hiro Murai-directed video for “Grief,” which borrows its pitch-dark approach from Jonathan Glazer’s arthouse alien film Under the Skin (2013).  This is Earl’s world, a collection of bodies isolated from one another by a sea of shadows, and despite its bleakness, he has the lyrical tact to navigate it confidently—but only from the comfort of his home.

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