The Red Dress® is the national symbol for raising awareness of heart disease as the leading killer of women. Cardiovascular disease kills a woman every minute, more than all cancers combined, yet is largely preventable through the adoption of healthy lifestyles.

In 2010, the Department of Design entered into a unique partnership with the UC Davis Women’s Cardiovascular Medicine Program to campaign for women’s heart health awareness. This exhibition showcases 18 red dresses from the UC Davis Red Dress Collection created by design students.

To bring a sense of social consciousness to design, these red dresses are visual interpretations of this important health issue. From textile details to fitting silhouettes, the designs are unique but united in their beauty and use of the color red in educating women of all ages about heart disease and encouraging them to practice prevention.

Working together, design and medicine can empower both humanity and science to fight this number-one killer of women in the United States. 

This is a joint project of the UC Davis Design Collection and the UC Davis Women’s Cardiovascular Program. 

The Red Dress is a registered trademark of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).

Visit the Wear RED Facebook Page for information about the Annual Wear Red day, February 6.