Williamsburg On The Runway:

-A Williamsburg Fashion Weekend Preview_

This Saturday and Sunday, Williamsburg Fashion Weekend, curated by King Gurvy designer Arthur Arbit and held at Glasslands, promises to be just as eccentric, unconventional, and entertaining as last year’s extravaganza. At last September’s show, audiences were treated to a performance piece inspired by the Tonya Harding- Nancy Kerrigan scandal, leashes and chains, gorgeous garb inspired by Michael Jackson, neon, vinyl, and everything in between.
“The unexpected part is what I expect—that’s the thing that I like about pulling these kinds of designers together,” Arbit explained. “We give them all of the room they need to do whatever they want to do, and it’s always a surprise. Aside from the press releases that I got from the designers, I have not idea what’s going to happen for most of the shows. I know that it will be fun.”
The weekend, which is in its seventh season, will feature twelve designers, some who have worked with Arbit before and others who are new. Saturday will feature Alisha Trimble, who was responsible for the ice skater imitation at the last show and will be working with performance artist Cleo Fishel on a collaborative piece, “Les Faims Mauvaises,” a French pun which conflates “The Bad Hunger” with “The Bad Women.” Joann Berman, an NYC resident for 52 years but a newcomer to Williamsburg Fashion Weekend, will present “Boiy Crazy”; Desira Pesta, who uses sustainable fabric and materials in unconventional ways, will present “Lace & Void,” in which “literal sparks will fly”; Dexter and Lauren of FLAWK will present “Technology vs Nature,” which will explore electronic and toxic waste; and Saira Huff of Total Crap Uninc. will present an avant-garde dance performance where glam meets punk.
Sunday will feature Aribt’s own line, King Gurvy, a fanciful, soft knitwear collection in stark contrast to his black vinyl collection last year. Sunday will also feature Erik Z and Rachel N of Robot Death Kult that will explore nihilism and capitalism; Ruffeo Hearts Lil’ Snotty; Erin Frumet and Daniel Tucker Nelson of Saddle Tramps, who will explore Georgia O’Keefe’s skull paintings as well as 70’s cinematic views of space, the future, and cults; SDN by Marcus Hicks, who has created a sustainable men’s and women’s wear line called Black Salad; Tar and Feather’s line, Walk of Shame; and Rawan Rihani’s line, Nightswimming. Sunday’s after party will feature music by MNDR, These are Powers, and Pink Stallone.

“I narrowed it down to have an interesting collection that juxtaposed people who are into looking into the past, the future, and the present for inspiration,” Arbit said. “They’re all pushing the envelope but from different angles. The juxtaposition of the different designers is going to be pretty interesting for the audience this time; they’re all very very different.”
While last years show was held at Secret Project Robot, this season’s show will be held at Glasslands in Williamsburg, which has hosted Arbit before. Arbit is particularly excited about the work which wlll be up during the weekend, a tissue paper instillation by artist Vashti Windish of live with animals. Tickets are $8 and will be sold at the doors, which open at 8pm.