In recognition of their contribution to building culture and cross-cultural partnership through education, Roshani Leanage, Chairperson, Lanka Institute of Fashion Technology (LIFT) and Mod’Art International – Sri Lanka and Niroshani Leanage, Managing Director, LIFT and Mod’Art International – Sri Lanka, were conferred with the honor of the Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters of France (Chevalier dans Ordre des Arts et Lettres de France). The Knight of the Order of Arts and Letters of France is the second-highest civilian French honor. In presenting the medals of recognition on behalf of the French Government, the Ambassador for France in Sri Lanka and the Maldives, H.E. Eric Lavertu, applauded the two honorees’ efforts for adding value to Sri Lanka through their solid partnership with a leading French fashion school.
Lanka Institute of Fashion Technology was launched in 2000. Roshani Leanage and Niroshani Leanage started their affiliation with France in 2014 by beginning a collaboration process with Mod’Art International, a top French school of fashion in Paris. The school offers a portfolio of graduate and postgraduate programs in fashion management and fashion design. Since the launch of Mod’Art International – Sri Lanka by LIFT in 2015, more than 100 young women and men have graduated into the world of fashion armed with knowledge, professional training, and global industry exposure. Since their affiliation with France through their franchise of Mod’Art International, Roshani and Niroshani have maintained close ties with the French Embassy in Colombo, supporting the celebration of France’s cultural events. The French Ambassador acknowledged this contribution and recalled their leading role in the French Spring Festival and events associated with the Beaujolais Nouveau.
The opportunities for young people pursuing the three-year Bachelor in Fashion Design offered by Mod’Art International – Sri Lanka is the recognition the program has globally, especially in Europe. Beyond academic content, students enrolled in the program go on a tour of France in their second year. This exposure program is part of their curriculum. They see and learn first-hand about the potential their qualification holds in the fashion capital. They are taken on tours to see the work of fashion designers who have worked for reputed fashion labels, with visits to fashion streets, exposure to fashion houses and sewing establishments, visual merchandising tours, and museum exhibitions. An introduction of this magnitude gives potential industry entrants an understanding of the craft and its systems. Young women and men mulling their future in the fashion industry will encounter opportunities by pursuing the Mod’Art International degree program in Sri Lanka. And with Paris being the nucleus of the fashion industry with designers anchored in its labyrinth of couture houses, this recognized program allows students to grab lucrative internships and employment. The immersive degree program with Mod’Art International provides an all-encompassing insight into everything about French couture and more. Undergraduates learn the French language through Alliance Francaise de Kotte, merging academics with insights into French culture, lifestyle, and the effervescent universe of Parisian fashion. Roshani and Niroshani were honored, as opined by the Ambassador, to acknowledge their role in building bridges through their partnership, becoming vectors in the crossroads of French cultural influence and way of life.
