San Bernardino, CA – A local college student has made history for being the first fashion design student from the Inland Empire to ever win a Silver Award in a national competition sponsored by the American Advertising Federation.

Christopher Lopez, 28, of Moreno Valley won a Silver ADDY award in the student competition at the 2015 National American Advertising Federation Conference at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas, Nevada on June 13.

Lopez is a third year student in the Bachelor of Arts program in fashion design at the Art Institute of California-Inland Empire campus in San Bernardino.

His creation, HAUS of Wonderland—A Fairy Tale Couture, earned the award for excellence in the Illustration Campaign category.  To advance to the national level, Lopez needed to win at two levels of competition.  He first won a gold ADDY in local Inland Empire competition, then a silver award at the district level earlier this year.

The American Advertising Awards (formerly ADDY’s) recognize excellence in professional and student artistic work in a three-tier system, starting in the Inland Empire and advancing to district and national competitions.  Over 40,000 submissions are received for judging every year at the national level in a variety of categories.

“This is a very prestigious award,” said Su Pak, president of the local chapter of the American Advertising Federation.  “It’s the first time a fashion design student from the Inland Empire has advanced to win a Silver Award at the national level.  This is a remarkable achievement and we are very proud of Chris.”

As a student artist, Lopez has a passion for design. “I always like to tell a story with each of my pieces. I want my audience to get drawn into a wonderland-like state when exploring each piece with my designs, and great attention to detail, and that’s exactly what I delivered with this fashionably adventurous collection.”

HAUS of Wonderland-A Fairy Tale Couture is a fashion illustration collection that Lopez says was inspired by Lewis Carroll’s Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and present day couture fashion.

His collection features four highly stylized sketches that are designed for a couture runway show or costumes for a film, play or musical.  “Each piece is based on four characters from the story, featuring the adventurous Alice, the elaborate yet villainous Queen of Hearts and trouble making duo, the Tweedle Twins, Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Dum.”

After graduation from the Art Institute in 2016, Lopez wants be a costume designer for film, TV and the entertainment business.  “I love telling stories and making them come to life with my designs.  I love working with themes and concepts.  I’m an artist at heart and my family says it’s in my blood.” At the Art Institute, career service advisors assist students with job placement as they near graduation.

Lopez is from Los Angeles and grew up in Arcadia where he developed his artistic passion for fashion illustration in high school.  Later, he chose the Art Institute in San Bernardino because it was closer to his new home in Moreno Valley and offered everything he wanted to reach his career goals.What’s his best advice for young aspiring artists?  “Achieving this award truly made my Wonderland become a reality,” said Lopez. He said his best advice for young aspiring artists is “Make your Wonderland become a reality by working hard and having true passion for your art and craft.”