Look A : The Noreen Dean Set

The Noreen Dean set was designed for the annual Fashion 500 event held in Manhattan. It was meant to stand out with sleeves inspired by the 1890s “leg of mutton” sleeve, which was modernized with the “cold shoulder,” which added classic sensuality. The design elements of the bodice resemble a two-piece saree crop top. The skirt features a high low pencil skirt hem, with a “V” slit in the back. As for the detachable organza cape, this was added to create a dramatic entrance. The design is also addressing social, environmental, and health issues: it was designed with dyslexic communities in mind, and the production was done to combat the growing fabric waste issues in the industry. This left-over fabric was put to good use and this ensemble has only been produced once because of its rare fabric.

A native to New York, designer, Belania Daley grew up inspired by her Caribbean dancehall roots. Daley explained, “I’ve always liked fashion because my family is Caribbean - Jamaican and fashion plays a big role in the dancehall world. So, it’s like you have to come out with the unique custom best dress outfit.”i Daley’s affinity for fashion progressed as she began hand sewing at a young age and later learned to sew on a machine in her early teens. From ages 13 to 17, Daley a was making and designing clothing. Daley went on to complete an undergraduate degree at FIT in technical design. She said, “The designer has the right idea, and we make the raw ideas fit the body perfectly. That is technical design. So, I got into technical designs because fashion design is super competitive. It’s ridiculously competitive in the job field.” Daley later went on to work in the industry gaining experience at other brands while simultaneously working on her own brand. Daley has described her enthusiasm for Black entrepreneurship by stating, “Why should I not be another Black fashion designer? Because there’s thousands, which there are not? So, with that being said, I always go to the fact that there’s not enough of us doing these things…There’s not enough Black fashion designers doing the work and the due diligence to build the foundation for others and I’m willing to do that.” Daley’s designs are inspired by the uniqueness and necessity of pairing cohesively dissimilar items. Daley expressed, “you know, you usually wouldn’t put a leather with a chiffon. But I think my favorite part of designing is definitely discovering things that I didn’t think would go together, but for some reason my mind draws and is putting it together. It’s like I’m relentless”.

Daley’s brand is BCD Planet and focuses on designing bespoke pieces that can be wardrobe staples while adding flair and statement. According to Daley, “BCD Planet creates Resort Collectable Collections made in small lots with one of a kind production fabric that is not mass produced. Each collection we do not aim to follow current trends but to expand your wardrobe through all seasons.” As a female entrepreneur and designer, Daley recalled, “What inspired me to start my business was the connection of learning differences and fashion design. So, BCD planet is a direct reflection of dyslexia. With dyslexia you see, and you do things very differently than people who don’t have it...So I wanted to inspire, at least people who are already in the Black community, and people who are not in it to be brave and proud of your learning difference”. Daley aims to inspire and create awareness for those who have dyslexia. “With my work I want to show people, hey, I have dyslexia, I’m a Black female, I’m doing fashion all of this should inspire you…Yes, you should not be ashamed because you learn a little bit differently you should be proud because it’s your ability, not your disability. So, my work is here to show others that I’m doing it so you can do it too. Daley is using her brand and her voice to empower those with learning differences or challenges and using empowerment to redefine those differences into victory. She leads by example, creating a visual and material dialogue about dyslexia and design within the Black community!

Look B : The Nyangatom Woman

Dr. Tameka Ellington grew up in Cleveland, Ohio, and expressed a passion for art and illustration from a very young age. Ellington remembers drawing since she was able to hold a pencil, around the age of 4. Ellington first developed an interest in drawing for comic books before she discovered her interest in fashion. She explained, “…My first career goal was to be an artist working for one of the companies for comic books.” Through an 8th grade Home Economics course, Ellington created her first garment. She made a pair of 1970s style pink jungle shorts. Working alongside her teacher Mrs. Jordan, Ellington realized fashion was an area of great interest to her. Ellington recalled, “I love illustrating, and now that I have had this experience with sewing, I love sewing! So, her [Mrs. Jordan’s] daughter at the time was a student at Kent State University’s fashion program and she brought me a brochure, and ever since 8th grade I knew that I was going to go to school for fashion at Kent State University and become a designer”. Ellington went on to achieve the academic and career goals that she set for herself. She explained, “I started off just part-time and eventually finished my Ph.D. and became a full-time professor, it’s amazing being able to do something that you love and to be able to teach people about what it is that you love!”

Ellington was able to pave the way while doing what she loved and made history in doing so. Ellington recalled, “When I first came there [Kent State University] and still today, I am the first and only African American professor my department has ever had!” Nonetheless, Dr. Ellington has used the power to prevail throughout her life and career and has used literature, research, and experience to advocate and educate regarding the representation of Black designers in the fashion industry. Ellington uses her love for teaching and for the Black community to give back in many ways. The design work that Ellington has created as an academic has been focused on African culture. Ellington’s pieces range from inspirations based on the Ghanaian cultures, the Lesotho people and pieces that are inspired by Malian peoples. The piece featured in the exhibition is inspired by the Nyangatom of the Omo Valley, located on the border of Southwest Ethiopia and Sudan. The original skirt is usually made of goat skins and the ensemble is usually accompanied with a necklace made from dried seeds that is given during marriage, and to young girls by their fathers. Married women often wear the longer triangular shaped shirt with metal beads. The triangular skirt was the main source of inspiration for Ellington when she designed this ensemble.

Ellington explained that she designs based on African heritage, “to learn more about the beauty in Africa. You know, things that we as African Americans or Black Americans, we don’t get to know those things. We are told the very opposite about Africa and what it is. Doing that research was a way for me to learn about the beauty in Africa and to be able to show other people about the beauty in Africa.” As a distinguished fashion scholar and designer, Dr. Ellington adds vast knowledge and innovation to her field. “It’s almost kind of like you get double the reward because...I had my opportunity to work in the industry as a designer, and being a designer is very different than teaching students how to make a product”. In Dr. Ellington’s newly released memoir titled Make Fear Your Superpower, she educates and inspires by mapping out the details necessary to achieve one’s goals!

Look C : Floral blouse and pants set

Designer Simone Sullivan, originally from Miami, Florida, has been designing since her time in middle school. Sullivan has made successful strides establishing her designs in New York City. Sullivan is a Parson’s alumna and has used her skillset in fashion to promote Black beauty. Sullivan explained, “I just always see Black women wearing my stuff, and then there’s some things I design that specifically has a curvy Black woman in mind, which is interesting because for the runway they tend to not have curves” In reflecting on her design process, she said, “honestly the best part is when you’ve made something and someone has it on, and you can see how happy they are to have on what you just made for them”. Sullivan organized a successful collection to New York Fashion Week for Fall of 2019, Sullivan’s models graced the runways topless with emphasis on strong pant silhouettes. Featuring all Black models, the collection tastefully represented modern day soul style in the silhouette, fabric, and details of the pants, with bucket hats as accessories. Sullivan is destined for greatness in fashion as her impressive designs continue to empower and give confidence to Black women. The floral top and orange bottom ensemble featured in the exhibit create a flattering silhouette on the figure and this ensemble was also designed in 2019.

Look E : Cross Colours Kente Print Shirt and Orange Pants

Carl Jones and TJ Walker teamed up to launch their iconic fashion brand Cross Colours in 1989. Cross Colours’ vision statement is “Clothing without prejudice.” The statement rings true as the politics facing Black expression in fashion are still occurring in the contemporary market.Their design inspirations were visually communicated by the playful color palette, graphics and screen prints that the brand became known for. According to Jones, “We founded Cross Colours in 1989 and then showed at Magic trade show in Las Vegas in 1990. It was really outstanding because you have to understand that back then the fashion industry was mainly a white business. So, jumping in there with a brand addressing to black culture and establishing it in the market successfully was our biggest achievement ever.” The brand was catapulted into the limelight with celebrities like Tupac, Will Smith, and TLC, among others, adorned in their designs. According to Bobb Brooke, “Through their bold designs and graphics, Walker and Jones originally set out to craft positive messaging around African American culture and oppression during the Reagan administration, when there was heightened police brutality, a war on drugs, and an education crisis in America. Cross Colours became widely recognized and worn by the hip-hop community.” The brand is also known for its references to Afrocentrism and for bringing awareness to social justice efforts and issues.

Look F: Kente Textile Cloth

Kente cloth is created using many narrow-woven strips in colorful patterns that are sewn together. The cloth featured as a backdrop in the heritage case is likely made of silk. The design motifs have specific symbolic meanings.

This particular example of Kente cloth was worn as a garment. Using two pieces of Kente cloth, the one would wrap around lower body much like a skirt and the other across the shoulder or upper torso wrap. In 1964, a team of Cornell faculty consultants led by Dean Canoyer visited Ghana. During the visit, Nancy Saltford commissioned 2 pieces of kente cloth to be woven and purchased for the department

Look G: Silk Screen Printed Kente Suit Set

The Mississippi-born fashion designer Patrick Kelly passed away as a result of AIDS-related illness at the age of 35, on January 1, 1990, after starting his label just five years prior. Kelly was one of the most innovative designers of the 1980s. He created a new space for Black design in the Parisian fashion industry. Kelly’s brand was about incorporating fun prints and colors but brought much more than vibrancy to Paris. Through Kelly’s work, many noticed his aim to reclaim and redefine blackface, and to re- appropriate symbols that have histories rooted in racism. These symbols included Black dolls, golliwogs, watermelons and more. Kelly distinctively and intentionally created dialogue between these symbols to defy the norms of Parisian fashion and disrupt the meanings behind these complex historic symbols. According to fashion studies scholars Lewis, Van Dyk and Fraley, Keith, “Kelly offered something different, but not necessarily innovative; it was a pronouncement from his culture, which clashed demonstrably with the traditional, particularly with the traditions of the fashion system, possibly because so few black individuals have risen to prominence.” The silk screen printed dress was designed by Kelly in 1987 for his spring 1988 collection. In 1988, Kelly became a member of the Chambre Syndicale du Prêt-à-Porter, which governs the body of the French ready-to-wear industry. This made Kelly not only the first Black member but allowed him to participate in Paris fashion week. Many of Kelly’s designs were inspired by his grandmother. Antwan Sargent states, “What’s fascinating is that the buttons he placed on the dress were not part of some homage to bygone European design. Instead, they were directly influenced by his grandma in Mississippi, who Kelly grew up watching place unconventional button pairings on clothes. The buttons gave the design a kind of riotous, black Southern femininity that became one of his lasting legacies.” Kelly’s legacy continues to live on as his work still stands distinctively apart from many designers that have followed after him.