“Though Tattered and Torn…”, the fundraiser for St. Joseph’s Women’s Hospital Shimberg Breast Center featuring the vintage collection of designer Michael Vollbracht, drew a stylish crowd to Lot 1901 in Ybor City last Thursday.
The raw, industrial-chic space proved to be the ideal backdrop for the artfully displayed fashions, some more than a century old, as a model posed and swirled in a dazzling Vollbracht gown previously worn by Beyonce and Eva Longoria.
Nora Gunn, VP of development for the SJH Foundation, said that the fundraising total from the event (and sales that night of original fashion sketches by Vollbracht) is expected to be $15,000.
“It has exceeded all our expectations,” said Gunn. “Michael has drawn a poignant parallel between these vintage fashions and those fighting this terrible disease — even if one feels damaged from treatment, one is still valuable and beautiful.”
Photos by Pezzo Photo captured the scene.
This article appears in Jan 14-20, 2016.