With a name so linked with classic literature, it is no surprise that this woman gravitated toward a career in writing. She is a current senior at the University of Wisconsin studying both English and art history, who created and now edits an entire arts section in a campus life and style publication. In her limited spare time, she also works as a model. If that doesn’t sound like the creative life of your dreams, then I don’t know what does. She wears a gorgeous blanket scarf over a simple cotton black dress with tights. Her gray booties add a touch of shimmer to the otherwise minimalistic look.
Name: Brontë Mansfield
Role: Arts editor, MODA magazine
CollegeFashionista: What is your favorite part about being MODA‘s arts editor?
Brontë Mansfield: The easy answer is I love seeing everyone’s work in print twice a year. The long and more complex answer is that I really enjoy leading a team, and kind of building a section from the ground up has been really fun. The best part for me is watching these writers grow and being a community.
CF: How has your interaction with the arts influenced your take on fashion?
BM: I think the biggest way is that, I work at the Chazen [Museum of Art] and I handle art on a daily basis, so it has really directly influenced my personal style. You can’t wear heels because, if you’re carrying art, you don’t want to roll an ankle and break things. You can’t wear nail polish; it might get on the art. You can’t wear bracelets or long jewelry or big scarves or lotion on your hands. So, it’s really created a minimalist aesthetic for me, I think, and handling art has really influenced how I dress myself. But then, having an art history background has influenced how I consume fashion-related media, so I’m always looking at things with a more critical eye. I think people who study art end up being more hypercritical of fashion, especially with things like appropriation and are really in tune to things like artistic borrowing.
CF: Can we expect any fashion/arts collaboration in MODA‘s content this spring?
BM: We are always trying to incorporate fashion into the section on a daily basis with online content, but it is something that is always event based. If a designer makes a collection with some very obvious undertones from a certain artist, it makes it easier to talk about, like when [Jeff] Koons did his Birkin bags recently.
CF: Who are a few of your fashion icons?
BM: Anna Wintour’s hair, Karl Lagerfeld’s “uniform” and the people of CollegeFashionista, themselves—the whole crew. I guess, actually, this is not a person who is not famous, but the person that has most influenced my style out of anyone. Her name is Aromy; she was my roommate the summer after my freshman year. One of the amazing things that she taught me, aside from crocheting, is that I should be investing in clothes and investing in an image.
Learn More: Catch up with this Fashionista around campus; you’ll most likely find her in the Chazen Museum of Art or grabbing coffee at a local shop. Also, be sure to check out MODA magazine online!
