In New York City, there's Fashion Week, and then there's Fashun Tweek...
Having attended a variety of shows at New York Fashion Week over the last several years, I've come to know the formula of what to expect going into each event as an independent photographer. You arrive at the venue, invite ready to be scanned, and are promptly filed into the room and pushed to the back as most of the time you’re in the standing lot. Depending on the mood of the staff and if you're lucky, you might be able to squeeze into the press riser or, even better, be able to kneel down in-between a gap along the runway. It's a gamble either way. I have to say, arriving at the venue for Fashun Tweek I wasn't sure what to expect, but the mold was quickly broken as I was thrown into what has to be the most energetic Fashion Week event I've ever attended.
Fashun Tweek is New York's unofficial platform for today's freshest designers, and it readily shows not only in the designers and their collections, but in the attending crowd as well. If you had something new and different to say about fashion and style, this was the place to be. Most fashion shows I've attended feel more like a business transaction, which they basically are when you get down to it. At Fashun Tweek however, everyone was there to enjoy and experience innovation from a fresh perspective. There were equally as many 'runway' looks in the crowd as there were on the actual runway.
The event was also a much more open experience, with being able to simply walk in and and have free reign to explore and meet fresh faces. A general off-the-cuff nature of the event made it a bit hectic to know what was going on at any specific moment, and the large crowd made finding a good vantage point a challenge at times, but it came with the territory. As a photographer, it was rather exciting to be a bit lost in the chaos as I found myself in a number of situations I would never have been in at a regular event. Finally, a quick shout out to Margie Plus for a fantastic performance and thanks to Bullett Magazine for sponsoring the event. Looking forward to next year!