Jamie Foxx, Idris Elba And More Help Designer Ozwald Boateng Celebrate His First Womenswear Collection At The Iconic Apollo Theater
Designer Ozwald Boateng partnered with Harlem 100 committee to debut a collection as an ode to the 100th anniversary of the Harlem Renaissance.
The bespoke couturier has been a menswear designer for over 30 years, including creating iconic pieces for Marvel’s epic Black Panther film. Ozwald debuted his first womenswear collection with colorful African-inspired prints and patterns.
The cultural event was held Sunday evening (May 5) at the iconic Apollo Theater with 60 models including stars such as Diggy Simmons and Michael K. Williams. The runway show kicked off with a short film based on Africanism, into the future of authenticity and the idea of what is real.
“Throughout my career, I have focused on how design can facilitate self-expression and enhance our inner selves," Boateng explains. “Now that we live more of our lives online it’s more important than ever for us all to have better tools to express who we are as multidimensional people and to connect meaningfully with each other. That is why I partnered with social network VERO because I believe they provide the tools.”
The star-studded event was a celebration of diversity, music, history and, of course, fashion. A ton of A-list celebrities came out to support the London-based designer, such and Dapper Dan, Jamie Foxx, Angela Simmons and Jessie Williams, along with newlyweds Idris Elba and Sabrina Dhowre.