BDS teacher Valencia Clay participates in photo shoot for an article in the February issue of Vogue showcasing the Pyer Moss show. Clay is pictured above wearing an outfit by designer Kerby Jean-Raymond spotlighting his spring 2019 collection designed to “write a new narrative”. Read more on the inspiration behind his designs below.

The New Fashion Communities: How the Industry Is Embracing Inclusivity

JANUARY 17, 2019 9:00 AM

It was dark. A misty rain was falling, a gospel choir was arrayed in front of a row of cabins—relics of the nineteenth-century free black community of Weeksville in Brooklyn—and Kerby Jean-Raymond, the designer of Pyer Moss, was showing his spring 2019 collection. The clothes on the makeshift runway were a literal rendering of the ties that bind: Jean-Raymond, the winner of the 2018 CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund award, had commissioned portraits from the artist Derrick Adams, which were literally woven into the clothes—a young black man enlivened a white tee; a father and child shimmered on a beaded sheath. The night was a tribute to community—not just the friends and family in the audience and on the runway, but also a kinship with ancestors. “I want to write a new narrative,” Jean-Raymond explained.

If the Pyer Moss show was powerful and moving, it also provided a stunning example of how the fashion world is waking up—not a minute too soon!—to both the necessity and the joy of embracing shared values. A fierce solidarity characterizes the new generation of young American designers and stands as a radical refutation of the industry’s stereotype as backbiting and hyper-competitive. Maybe the fraught political climate has made this fellow-feeling so strong, or maybe it’s as simple as the new way of doing business—direct-to-consumer models mean that designers need not fight one another for retail floor space. Or perhaps it has to do with the rise of the internet, which offers a way of reaching across borders. And why not celebrate this profound inclusivity on your runways and your Instagram and in your ad campaign? Click to read full article.