Project Runway: All-Star's Korto Momolu Explains Why She'll Never Compete on the Show Again

Amira Castilla
·2 min read
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Photo: Bravo / Contributor (Getty Images)
Photo: Bravo / Contributor (Getty Images)
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Project Runway’s Korto Momolu proved that her rocky exit from the show’s twentieth season was not the end of her status in the fashion industry, but rather, a boost, as she presented a 22-piece collection at New York Fashion Week on September 9, 2023.

The show’s all-star sat down with me via Zoom before the fashion show to talk about her frustrating time on the show’s latest season which aired this summer but was filmed last winter.

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Momolu is well aware that her African-inspired pieces are not the most in-demand in the mainstream fashion industry, but chooses to continue pushing her culture (being from Liberia) forward even if she’s alone. “There aren’t too many designers that do what I do. It’s scary, you know, no one wants to take a chance and not be accepted or maybe not get the masses, but I’m not for the masses. And I think in my career I learned that and it’s ok.”

From Korto Momolu’s NYFW 2023 show
From Korto Momolu’s NYFW 2023 show


From Korto Momolu’s NYFW 2023 show

Momulo was eliminated from the competition after a clash with the judges. She created a pair of pants that split the panel as they all had strong feelings about the creation. What irritated Momolu the most was that the judges expressed their dissatisfaction with the outfit, though they asked her for bolder pieces after a stream of “safe weeks” in the competition. The boldly printed and shaped pants were her attempt to stand out.

Korto Momolu and the pants she created that got her eliminated
Korto Momolu and the pants she created that got her eliminated


Korto Momolu and the pants she created that got her eliminated

Instead of bowing out quietly after elimination, she decided to push back and confront the judges about their inconsistencies and told the other designers that she wasn’t sad to leave because she expected it to happen saying:

“I stood for something and I knew it wasn’t gonna be popular. But I had to stand up because every single week I’m getting these responses from the judges that make no sense to me. So, yeah, I think maybe I’m just too real for that platform now. It’s my last time going on the show, I’m gonna wish them all the best. But yeah, I think we just need to figure out the judging.”

However, months later after the show wrapped in 2022, she was introduced to Maggie and Hubert Delany, founders of EPN Fashion Week through designer Malan Breton. They asked her to create a solo show to present at New York Fashion Week 2023, a coveted event for any designer to present at. How’s that judges for a “dated” designer?

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