Christian Cowan, LaQuan Smith, Becca McCharen-Tran, and Daniella Kallmeyer Come Together with Amex and the CFDA to Mark Pride
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The Council of Fashion Designers of America and American Express marked pride 2023 by hosting an “Express Yourself” panel of LGBTQIA+ designers — LaQuan Smith, Christian Cowan, Becca McCharen-Tran and Daniella Kallmeyer, and cocktail party for American Express Platinum Card and Centurion Members and guests. The conversation covered staying on course as a queer creative, self-expression and how designers can help uplift their own communities through fashion and activism.
Before the panel, CFDA chief executive officer Steven Kolb came up to speak to the crowd making it clear that Amex as a company was firmly behind the LGBTQIA+ community: “We’ve worked with Amex for a very long time, particularly on fashion activations,” Kolb said. “But before we really moved forward, I wanted to make sure they really wanted to do it, because you see so many corporations today kind of just pink washing.” The executive went on announce that though the support of American Express and event attendees they will be able to provide a $30,000 scholarship for scholarship for LGBTQIA+ fashion design students.
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Them editor in chief Sarah Burke moderated the panel with the designers.
“It’s for women who want to be desired,“ said Smith, whose high-octane collections have been seen on Beyoncé and countless celebrities, when Burke asked each of them who they imagine wearing their collections. “There’s nothing wrong with leaning into that with the understanding that everyone is not going to identify with your design aesthetic or the brand DNA.”
Daniella Kallmeyer jumped in: “I actually have like the identical answer and the opposite brand. And I think that what’s so special about fashion is that I also designed for women who want to be taken seriously and want to feel sexy and want to feel bold,” she said, pointing out that what is “sexy and strong” can mean many things in term of dress. “And yet my clothes are muted and suiting.”
Burke pointed out that the designers “all kind of play with and respond to gender in such interesting and also different ways.” She moved the conversation to the impact of fashion beyond the runway, asking each how fashion can be used as a driver for inclusivity and the furthering diverse representation particularly for LGBTQIA+ and queer people of color.
“Our goal was to challenge like how trans bodies are allowed to show up in public space,” McCharen-Tran, whose label Chromat focuses on swimwear, said. “That is a huge part of why we’re doing what we’re doing. It’s creating more options and pushing the culture. I think fashion is a tool to live in your gender, to live in your truth and be comfortable,“ McCharen-Tran said to a mix of applause and screams from the crowd.
Cowan added: “We’ve tried to use kind of our collaborations to kind of infiltrate the masses with our message. So whether it’s with Crocs or Lil Nas X, whatever we’ve done, we kind of bring our super queer spirit, all of our queer casting in a really unapologetic, loud way into the spaces that haven’t had it before.”
Post panel, the crowd gathered upstairs on the roof for a cocktail party where each designer unveiled a limited-edition T-shirt exclusively for American Express Card Members that reflects the theme of inclusion and Pride, selling through CFDA’s Shop Runway360 — available now through July 31 or until sold out.
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