NEW YORK (Reuters) – Emerging designer Marrisa Wilson made her runway debut at New York Fashion Week on Tuesday with a collection inspired by the explosion in popularity of digital spaces.
“I’m sure you’ve seen everything that’s going on. Metaverses and NFTs and, you know, all these things that kind of feel really far and out there,” she said, referring to non-fungible tokens, a type of digital asset.
“But I really wanted this collection to… create a space for women, in particular women of color, to be able to explore and participate in those spaces. Right now that space is really heavily dominated by white men,” she said.
The Fall 2022 line was filled with graphics and prints to evoke what she calls a “futurism aesthetic” and “excitement for the unknown.”
Her collection features silky jackets and pants in black, white and deep red.
“And then the last drop you’ll see will be this… explosion of the digital lavender,” she said, explaining that the designers “heavily leaned” into periwinkle, the Pantone color of the year.
“Purple, that’s a sense of like calming in these digital spaces,” she said.
During the show three NFTs, hand-drawn by Wilson, were displayed and available for sale. In addition, 10 limited-edition commemorative bomber jackets will link to a specific NFT.
New York Fashion Week will end on Wednesday.
(Reporting by Andrew Hofstetter and Alicia Powell; Writing by Mark Porter; Editing by Rosalba O’Brien)
