Culture & Community | Fashion | Lotta Studios | Arts & Culture | Westville | Youth Arts Journalism Initiative | Westville Renaissance Arts (WRVA) | Artwalk
Sasquatch with Tea Montgomery. KeQing Tan Photos.
A tent flap lifted, a camera flashed– and out stepped a brown, hairy creature, adorned in a patterned tunic.
“Wait, that’s a sasquatch!” called out announcer Frank E. Brady.
To surprised cheers, the New Haven Sasquatch strutted down the runway and made a pirouette, waving hello to the crowd. The golden material on its waist flashed as it turned.
Such was the scene at the seventh annual Westville Fashion Show this past Friday, a staple of the neighborhood’s 26th annual Artwalk. This year showcased the work of nine New Haven-based designers, consolidating several months of effort into a single night of swept hair and flowing fabrics.
Designers included Donald Carter, Tea Montgomery, Evelyn Massey, Ashleigh Huckabey, Sydney Bell, Shannon Harrell, Bushra Mahdi, Jorgie Bruckmann, and Anthony Murrell.
Mistina Hanscom, co-founder and co-owner of Lotta Studio, oversaw the whole process. As she walked through the first floor of 903 Whalley Ave, located right down the street from the show's outdoor tent, she stepped over trains of gauze and piles of fabric scraps. Makeup wipes and open tubes of lipstick covered the tables around her. Designers hovered around their models, tightening a strap or flattening a crease.
After five months of coordination, the final production was only minutes away.
To Hanscom, this year’s fashion show was unique, raising the number of designers from five to six to nine. Hanscom highlighted the lack of theme, which she said offered greater creative freedom for designers to express their various styles.
Four of the nine designers, she said, sourced their own material and constructed each outfit by hand. The others include small business owners: Huckabey’s Empath Vintage and Massey’s Noir Vintage Co., among others. Throughout, the Westville fashion show remained consistent in its mission: to encourage artistic vision and community building, without the elitism usually associated with high fashion.
Modeling Syd University. KeQing Tan Photos.
“I’m not interested in this elitism, that fashion is for the wealthy,” Hanscom said. “The idea that anybody that is at this show can hire one of these designers makes it very appealing to me.”
Upstairs, Artwalk veteran Tea Montgomery adjusted the fabric on model Ellektra Morrison. Light filtered in through the windows, and R&B music thrummed in the background. Models entered and exited, flitting in and out in bright, bold colors. They talked amongst themselves, relaxed.
In one corner, Montgomery’s model Sheldon Morrison lounged and posed for pictures with the New Haven Sasquatch, a beloved neighborhood icon. Morrison wore a loose vest with intricate circular designs, and gold necklaces that matched his teeth grills. Sasquatch sported an intricate paisley design in deep blue, bisected by a bright yellow strip of fabric tied around the waist.
Morrison and Sasquatch’s varying ensembles spoke to Montgomery’s spontaneous design process. He sources his material from the places he visits, collecting them from small shops while on road trips. Although most of his work features bold patterns, the final design involves some of the models’ input.
KeQing Tan Photos.
“I do have some more subdued pieces for people who don’t want to do the super bold stuff,” Montgomery said. “But I also like to challenge people’s norms, people’s confidence.”
Outside of designing, he also teaches a wearable art course at Cooperative Arts and Humanities High School (Co-Op), helping to further the idea of fashion as a way to empower and inspire.
As Montgomery gauged a bright paisley fabric, someone called from the other room. “I think we’d better head out soon.”
At the main venue on the Central Avenue Patio, the crowd excitedly awaited the models’ arrival. Children and adults strutted up and down the makeshift runway. Emcee Frank E. Brady joined them, striding down the red carpet in sunglasses with his microphone at his side. Westville residents clapped and cheered in approval.
“Let’s keep this same energy going!” Brady called out. And when the first model arrived on set, the crowd hit an uproar.
Jorgie Bruckmann. KeQing Tan Photos.
This year’s fashion show saw new and returning designers, each decked in their own unique ensembles. The audience let out a collective cheer when model Jorgie Bruckmann exited the tent in multi-pocket jeans, with gauzy strips of translucent cloth trailing behind her.
Her blue shirt, resembling a cross, was framed by a white jacket.
Bruckmann both designed and modeled her own line of clothing in the past year, and was followed by three other models wearing her TwoFaced line. One marched out in a mask made of woven wire mesh. LEDs and camera flashes struck the metal, rendering it ghostlike around her face.
Past Artwalk attendees also saw the return of a familiar brand: Syd University, the HBCU-inspired brainchild of designer Sydney Bell. Models sported varsity shirts, puffy vests, and relaxed shorts emblazoned with the words Syd University. The vintage, 70s-90s color palettes of greens and yellows dominated the runway.
Donald Carter models his own line, Donald Carter Couture. KeQing Tan Photos.
Donald Carter, one of the last few to exit the tent, received thunderous applause. He dressed in his own clothing line, Donald Carter Couture. The gray gown Carter wore started with a puffed neckline, gathered around the waist, then swept the floor. Silver cuffs extended from his wrists to his elbows.
“Woah!” One child exclaimed, leaning forward in his seat for a closer look.
Before leaving the crowd, Carter spun around briefly and struck a pose, angling one shoulder towards the ground and nodding his head, as if to say goodbye.
At the show’s end, models dispersed into the crowd, still draped in intricate fabrics.
Montgomery emerged in pants made from the paisley pattern he had been trimming pre-show. Visitors chatted animatedly, congratulating designers and cracking jokes with models. The red carpet rolled up, the lights turned off, and the bedazzled stars became New Haveners once more.
This article comes from the 2023 Cohort of the Youth Arts Journalism Initiative. KeQing Tan is a senior at Wilbur Cross High School and the Educational Center for the Arts.