Solange's Saint Heron Agency to launch immersive graduation festival

The Saint Heron Agency is partnering with the New School for an immersive virtual festival to celebrate graduating students at the Parsons' School of Fashion.

Unlike traditional graduation ceremonies, "Here and Now" will take place from the months of June to August, with a programme of online lectures, special performances, films screenings, design workshops and mentorship sessions.

Details about the online event are still scarce to this date, although the Saint Heron Agency has announced that American contemporary artist Jacolby Satterwhite is creating a new 3D installation for the occasion.

Ads

The installation, known as "Metonymy," will host the final projects of more than 300 graduating students from the School of Fashion at Parsons.

"As the world confronts the challenges of our current global crisis, fashion and design communities must embrace new ways to pause, evolve, and adapt. These challenges open up opportunities to expand growth in our creativity and innovation-two expressions at the core of Saint Heron as well as Parsons' students," the Saint Heron Agency said in a statement.

Solange has close ties with the Parsons School of Design, as the Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter was honored "for her notable contributions to the music and fashion industries" at the 70th annual Parsons Benefit in 2018.

While it is still unclear whether Solange will participate in "Here and Now," Beyoncé and Taylor Swift are the latest entertainment icons celebrating the class of 2020 in YouTube's virtual graduation ceremony.

"Dear Class of 2020" will also include Lizzo, Janelle Monáe, Lana Condor, Yara Shahidi, Demi Lovato, Lady Gaga, Hasan Minhaj, Andy Cohen, Billy Porter, Megan Thee Stallion, as well as Bill and Melinda Gates.

The multi-hour event will be headlined by former President Barack Obama and Michelle Obama, who will each deliver individual commencement speeches, as well as a joint message to graduating seniors.

"Dear Class of 2020" will be livestreamed on Saturday, June 6 on the YouTube Originals channel and YouTube's Learn@Home site.

"I've always loved joining commencements -- the culmination of years of hard work and sacrifice. Even if we can't get together in person this year, Michelle and I are excited to celebrate the nationwide Class of 2020 and recognize this milestone with you and your loved ones," Obama said on Twitter.