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Making it Work: The Entertainment World's Go-To-Guru

Written by Stephanie Garcia UVA

Wednesday, 19 March 2008

Anyone who's seen an episode of Project Runway knows that Tim Gunn is one of the highlights of the show -- but the man is so, so much more.

In a world infamous for its fickle tastes and flavor-of-the-week love affairs with stars, the recent fixation has been fashion guru Tim Gunn. A maven of style, Gunn has blasted onto the scene with his eye for fashion protégés, his eccentric yet tasteful personality, and his ever-constant mantra, “make it work."

Recently, Gunn graced the grounds of UVA with a lecture on “Transitioning your Wardrobe from College to the Work Place." With his book, Tim Gunn: A Guide to Quality, Taste & Style, and his niece, fourth year undergrad Wallace Grundy, by his side, Gunn enlightened helpless collegiates with necessary, if blunt, fashion advice. After asking the audience how many people were wearing flip-flops, Uggs or Crocs, he blurted out, “Go home after this and throw them away!” And yes, he does sound exactly like he sounds on television.

But why would one bother to listen to Gunn? What has he done to captivate the entertainment world and, at the same time, make his mark on the constantly changing world of fashion?

It’s all thanks to Bravo. Gunn, formerly an Associate Dean and later department chair of fashion design at Parsons, hit the big time with his debut on the first season of Project Runway in 2004. His role as a mentor to competing designers became a major attraction for viewers (next to Heidi Klum, of course), and Gunn has participated in all four seasons, continuing to support the designers in their quest for fashion fame. During his lecture Gunn raved about season four winner Christian Siriano, lauding him as the first “protégé” Gunn had ever met, “the next great American fashion designer."

Gunn’s guru success led to his own spin-off show, Bravo’s Tim Gunn’s Guide to Style. Along with model Veronica Webb, Gunn seeks out fashion duds and gives them a makeover. Echoing the popular Queer Eye for the Straight Guy, Gunn’s Guide to Style expanded Gunn’s popularity, with another season in the works. His book, of the same title, expands largely on his work from the show. From there, Gunn has been on a roll. Despite the concern that Gunn would forego season four in favor of Parsons, Bravo was able to rework its schedule to include the fan favorite in future seasons of Project Runway. In interviews, Gunn has said, “It’s invigorating and inspiring. I am the luckiest guy in the world." While the initial appeal of PR may have been Heidi Klum, Gunn has stolen the show. In addition to his book and TV work Gunn has recently become the Chief Creative Officer for Liz Claiborne and has plans to revamp the line to better fit modern-day women and their needs.

Gunn’s success is not limited to Bravo. Gunn had a cameo appearance on ABC’s Ugly Betty, playing a television reporter. On Tuesday, Gunn appeared on NBC’s Biggest Losers: Couples, giving the couples makeovers to accompany their successful weight losses. Using his appeal as an iconic style guru, Gunn has cemented his place in the entertainment world, becoming the go-to-guy for fashion crisis. Through his appearances in several cities, promoting his book and discovering designers, fans of his final word on style have gushed about his fashion genius and appealing personality. His ubiquitous appeal, charming, uncle/grandfather persona and exuberant confidence combine to create a comforting yet challenging character. And, even better — it’s all real.

Throughout his lecture, Gunn gave tips from both his book and personal experiences to the well-groomed UVA students. His main advice — less is more — resonated with a generation, one that has been primed for materialism. With Gunn as the future of fashion gurus, the entertainment world can tune out the growing pressure to succumb to material desires and figure out a way to “make it work."