Review Of Project Podcast: Tim Gunn’s Podcast For The “iconic Statement” Challenge On Project Runway

By: Edward Charkow

Season Three of Project Runway has brought about a new and exciting feature from Bravo.

Tim Gunn is the well-dressed and sophisticated Chair of Fashion Design at the New School of Parsons School of Fashion Design. Having served as the mentor for three seasons of Bravo’s most popular television show, Gunn uses a gentle but firm manner to deliver his expertise to the designers who are competing to win the show. Project Runway viewers have given Tim an Idol status – revering him for his popular catch-phrases “Make it Work” and “Carry On”. Both of Tim’s expressions encourage the designers to keep working without becoming disabled from fatigue or crippling self-doubt.

Project Runway viewers are embracing Tim Gunn’s written blog and recorded podcast, both of which appear on bravotv.com at the close of each episode. This extra serving of Gunn’s analysis of each designer’s work is delivered with wry-wit and genuine compassion for the designer. However, Gunn does not hold back from telling it like it is, and his podcasts are often filled with snarky remarks, verbal eye-rolling and occasionally blatant “bitchslaps” – another of Tim Gunn’s popular expressions.

For the August 9th, 2006 installment of Runway, Gunn speaks of the challenge called ‘Iconic Statement” in which each designer was required to develop a modern look for a particular American fashion icon. Instead of the designers choosing their favorite icons, in true Project Runway style the models were given the rare opportunity to do the choosing for the designers. In the podcast, Tim describes the scene in which the models are jumping on the pictures of the icons (each icon was represented by a photo of themselves, and whoever was in possession of that icon got to design the new look) as a “feeding frenzy” but declares the selection process a success. In Gunn’s words the pairings between designer and icon were “remarkable”. How much better does it get than Kayne, the Southern pageant gown designer and lover of all things glitter, being able to design for a modern day Marilyn Monroe? Other fitting parings included Michael the African American hip hop designer from Atlanta taking on Pam Grier, and Laura the ever-polished and often snooty designer from NYC dressing Katherine Hepburn. Young and cute Allison was paired with Farrah Fawcett, another promising combination.

After sketching, shopping, pattern-making and cutting, each model walked the runway in the creation of each designer. Tim Gunn tells us in his podcast that he has a strong suspicion of who was going to be voted out as they were preparing to hit the runway. He predicted that the bottom spot would either go to Bradley, who was forced into designing for Cher.

Most of the designers would have been thrilled to take on that challenge. As Gunn said “Cher is the ultimate chameleon so anything goes!” Incredulous, Gunn says that Bradley didn’t know who Cher was. In his usual flamboyant podcast style Gunn exclaims “What self-respecting gay male doesn’t know who Cher is?” In the end, however, Gunn tells us that he was “thrilled” when Michael won. In fact, he goes so far to say that he doesn’t have “adequate words” to express how fantastic Michael Knight is as a designer. He says that Michael’s design for a modern day Foxy Brown was truly “electrifying” and that Michael deserved to win the challenge. Michael Knight from Atlanta will have his design featured in a Tresemme Hair Products advertisement in Elle Magazine come Fall of 2006.

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