The Fashion Design graduate program has been housed in the URBN Center since 2013. This iconic building, located at 3501 Market Street, was created by Robert Venturi and transformed into a state-of-the-art center for design and the arts by the noted design firm of Meyer, Scherer & Rockcastle, LTD. The 140,000 square-foot facility is home to 17 of the Westphal College’s 25 undergraduate and graduate programs.

Fashion Design Studios

The URBN Center's spacious design and construction labs are flooded with natural light and provide a place for students to work and exchange ideas with their cohort.

SHIMA SEIKI Lab

In the SHIMA SEIKI Fashion Knit Lab, students learn to create quality fabrics by experimenting with combinations of yarn type and size within knit construction, using both traditional methods and cutting edge technology. Students become proficient in using this system, operating SDS ONE APEX 3 Design Program for virtual fabric sampling, understanding the principles of a wide variety of weft knit structures and acquiring the ability to produce these structures upon a flatbed knitting machine.

The lab houses two SHIMA SEIKI SSR 112 V bed knitting shaped panel knitting machines, a 7 gauge and a 12 gauge. Also in the lab are an Agteks DirecTwist 2A cone to cone multifunctioning twisting machine for plied yarn creation and a Meon Linker double head 8 gauge and 14 gauge used for sweater panel assembly.

Students learn virtual design and programming software for textile and apparel on 3 SHIMA SEIKI APEX 3-3 SDS One computer stations and 5 SHIMA SEIKI APEX 3-4 SDS One computer stations, additionally featuring the Simet Electronic Assembly Winder for splitting and combining yarn packages up to 3 plies.

Hybrid Making Lab

The Hybrid Making Lab is a is a college-wide resource, giving students accesses to fabrication equipment and a production space in a multidisciplinary setting. It has a variety of micro and small scale tools geared toward small scale prototyping.

Charles Evans Fashion Library

The Charles Evans Fashion Library was funded by a generous donation from the Charles Evans Foundation. The library is a rich resource of fashion books and periodicals, and is a quiet space where students can research historical references as inspiration.