Frontrunning Project Runway contestant Keith Michael will most likely be ejected from the show after submitting fake sketches in his application. The “sketches” were in fact photoshopped runway photos of other designers’ Spring 2006 collections.
Keith’s sketch (l) and Giambattista Valli Spring 2006 runway photo (r)
We knew there was something suspicious about the “sketch” pictured above when we saw the Project Runway premiere last week. I was going to reveal to the world that Keith had copied Giambattista Valli’s 2006 look. However, the folks at Best Week Ever beat me to the punch and even identified the other two copied looks (from Marni and Lacoste), which are shown after the jump.
My question is this: How the hell did Nina Garcia not figure this out considering she wears Marni and you can see her sitting in the front row in the Valli photograph? I smell double conspiracy. She totally did figure it out, but they let Keith on anyway just so they could kick him off, either for their own ratings or just to teach him a gigantic primetime lesson.
Keith’s sketch (l) and Lacoste Spring 2006 runway photo (r)
Keith’s sketch (l) and Marni Spring 2006 runway photo (r)
(Image Source)
I agree, the producers certainly knew of Keith’s fuzzy collection submission. A precursor of what was to come was set up with the previous episode comment by a judge- I would like to look back at the records to see if he really did make the different dog outfits that he claimed to have made before deciding to leave the dog undressed and unadorned.
Keith Michael Spring 2007
Even though he made the same dress week after week on Project Runway before getting kicked out last week for breaking the rules, we still thought Keith Michael had some talent and promise, and was also cute from certain…
I like Keith Michael…I think he is talented and an amazing designer…and a good person. Notice he didn’t make excuses….whether he used the books or not. He said fine, and left with dignity. I respect him. I think he is confident and dumb little Kayne had his feelings hurt because he didn’t get to be a team leader and his dress for Miss America made her lose the Miss Universe Competition. I think that Keith was going against many odds, and I am sorry to see my favorite PR Designer leave. I look forward to seeing what else you will do.
Whatever Keith. Uli and Jeffrey are much better designers anyway.
keith is smart, he’s obtaining free publicity, might as well milk it while the cow is producing.
who fuckin cares?
As a reliable source, from someone who’s “been there,” I can say with absolute confidence that Keith Michaels is a bottom bitch. Furthermore, it’s not his real name. He’s not proud of his Italian heritage it would seem, but freely “borrows” from Italian designers. When he was good, he was reallly really good, and when he was bad, he was even better!
I guess, if you really don’t like a person or are a really jealous type, you only hear and see what fits your ideal of who that person is or will become.
Keith Michael told the judges in his interview that he has NEVER made Woman’s Clothing only MEN’s but he has enough confidence in his fashion abilities that he should be on the show.
How then would he show them sketches of women clothing that he designed.
The person or persons propagating this falsehood should be ashamed of themselves and the owners of the Blogs should ban these terrible people who can thru anonymity say anything they want without consequence.
after i saw the preview episode that someone would be kicked off i knew it would be keith. he even says it himself that he didnt design woman clohing and only design for men i knew there was something fishy about him and plus he had appeard very cocky i think the producers of project runway are very clever keeping the show intersting by not kicking off before during the auditon just to get good ratings
Yeah, he made 5 portfolios just like he made 5 dog outfits on last night’s episode. Ha.
I find the defense that Keith Michaels posted weak at best.
First off, when they ran the promos of the show saying someone had been kicked off, my wife bet it was Keith. I thought it might be that weird slacker guy who always seems stoned and almost didn’t get a submission in. So I did some Googling, and came across this nice little tid-bit. And with Mr. Michaels defense, my wife’s guess was the right one. So somebody knew something was up with him!
Secondly, as a professional artist (which is why I watch the show BTW…great design on it,) I find it odd to show a portfolio that was “research” for a show which looks WHOLLY at what you design, It is weird and clueless at best, and outright fraud at worst. It just doesn’t fit. Then again he made his own take on the dog challenge and decided that the dog would be pretty much undressed. Now, while I have deeply seated beliefs that dogs wearing clothes is a sin right up there with voting republican, if they ask for doggy sweaters, you gotta give them doggy sweaters. If they ask for a portfolio of YOUR work, you show them YOUR work.
And why the Photoshop? Even if this was for a “trend portfolio”, I can’t imagine WHY you would alter the images so heavily. Changing colors, obliterating faces….dropping accessories off. What is going on there? I don’t see why you would spend hours doing that just for a report on what people are wearing. Show the pictures! And as someone who REALLY knows Photoshop, you spent some time on that. It wasn’t a simple “5 minutes and I am done” gig.
Here is the sad thing in all of this….
You do good work. You do. You have the skills. Why fake it at all? Now you have made yourself look bad on TV, on a show that the fashionistas watch like well coiffed hawks! Your own work could have easily gotten you in!
Don’t give into fear and do stupid shit like this….
Oh well, I’m rooting for Michael anyway….
I want to make one thing very clear: I LOVE Nina Garcia. She always has the best critique and looks sharp while giving it.
in defense of nina garcia, i view almost every designer’s runway collections online (via style.com and nymag.com) and the only designs that stick out in my memory are my favorites. the designs he copied weren’t that remarkable. in fact, i saw the very same collections from marni, valli and lacoste and none of these outfits ring a bell.
don’t get me wrong, i hate nina as much as the next PR fan, but i’m ready to cut her a little slack for this slip up.
oh no, no, no! i agree….NINA!!! he fucked you up!
‘Project Runway’ Contestant Pulls Boucle Wool Over Nina Garcia’s Eyes
The shock is not that Project Runway contestant Keith Michael cheated by submitting sketches stolen from prominent designers’ runway…
Keith Michael speaks
My post about Project Runway contestant Keith Michael’s fake audition sketches has only been up for a few hours and already he has written in to defend himself. How flattering to know that he must be a regular reader. Anyway, this is what he has to sa…
i thought it might be time to write in. for the record, i submitted 5 portfolios for the judges review. the one you seem to be focusing on was a research assignment i did for a client in which i reviewed key fashion trends. as a designer, trend forecasting jobs come to me quite frequently. i’m very proud of all the work that i do. the panel of judges that reviewed my work had many years experience behind them. i found them neither ignorant, uninformed or misguided about their own profession.
keith-