The hour-long show, which featured 26 women standing in four floors of the apartments, was part of a collaboration between the body-positive nonprofit All Womxn Project and KENT, a lingerie brand founded on a desire to give women more natural lingerie.
Visitors to the High Line got quite an eyeful Wednesday when a diverse group of women posed in lingerie in the floor-to-ceiling windows of new apartments for a New York Fashion Week presentation.
The hour-long show, which featured 26 women standing in four floors of the apartments, was part of a collaboration between the body-positive nonprofit All Womxn Project — which uses an “X” in its name to promote gender fluidity and diverse identities — and KENT, a lingerie brand founded on a desire to give women more natural lingerie.
Despite the pouring rain, a crowd of friends and relatives of the models stood on the elevated park Wednesday to show support. Passersby stopped to snap pictures and wondered why 26 women were standing almost naked in the windows of the Five One Five apartment building.
The models in the presentation were cast from a Sept. 1 open call at the Fashion Institute of Technology. Participants wore black underwear to show uniformity, but they wore different tops to embrace their differences, said founder and creative director of KENT Stacy Anderson.
The women — black and white, thin and curvy, showing off tattoos, stretch marks, ribs and cellulite — posed and danced.
“It’s making me feel so sexy,” said model Veridiana Montas, a mother with curly bright orange-red hair and a medium build. “I hope people will see beautiful bodies come in all shapes and sizes.”
Models hoped the collaboration would help onlookers understand the importance of body positivity.
“Regardless of what you’re wearing over your skin, you have to go and take that off at the end of the day,” model Brianna Seward said.
All Womxn Project was founded in 2016 by friends Clémentine Desseaux and model Charli Howard after they were body-shamed in the modeling industry. The organization has partnered with companies like Nike, Aerie and Stella & Dot to release unretouched photos for campaigns to show diversity.
The fashion industry has often been criticized for a lack of diversity in bodytypes, and has been said to often showcase primarily white or thin models, Desseaux said.
“We want to challenge that and break the mold. We want to help diversify what young girls in the middle of the country will read about NYFW, we want to show her that she doesn’t have to fit in to be celebrated,” Desseaux said.
The collaboration between AWP and KENT is one of several shows during NYFW to attempt to bring diversity to the fashion industry. Rihanna’s Savage x Fenty collection, CHROMAT, and Christian Siriano are just a few examples of other brands that have used a wide range of body types and ethnicities in their shows.
“This presentation is a representation of the real world, where diverse women, from all paths of life, ages, looks, colors, abilities meet and celebrate the beauty of inclusivity,” Desseaux said.
For the last 15 minutes of Wednesday’s event, the women stood side-by-side on each of the four levels holding hands, embracing what some have called “flaws” on their bodies.
“Yes girls!” onlookers in the crowd cried, applauding and whistling to cheer on the women.