I’ve never sought out any award for the work I do. It’s already a precious gift for me, and I feel rewarded daily by the opportunity. I think it is important that we see people recognized for doing work that represents those marginalized throughout history. I am very happy to accept the recognition so that other little brown kids can see creative expression as a valuable way to make a living.
I want people to see that there is a value system to commercial art. There is a voice that can be had in fashion that is as powerful as music, painting or medicine.
We can use the layers accompanying how we dress people and the stories we tell to shift culture and make people see things differently.
I was thinking about that the night before! Haha. I was also super excited. To hang out with Tokischa and Rauw. We made a full day of it. Just taking pictures and playing with outfits. Those are both amazing talents that I am honored to have worn the WILLY CHAVARRIA label.
There was magic in the air for certain! People still tell me stories about what a great night it was. YG’s performance was mind-blowing, with Eli Escobar, Nomi Ruiz, and my niece Bianca Oblivian tearing up the decks. It was a big night of family coming together to celebrate what we all do together.
I love my queer perspective and the iconic notions of queer history that can come into play. I think that gender will inform fashion for quite a while longer, but who wears what is completely up to the wearer. I design clothes. The clothes themselves have no gender. So they can be worn by anyone in any way. I actually love to see styles I've made personalized into someone else’s unique expression. It’s one of the most exciting parts of the business.
I love doing multiple projects at once. They feed each other with knowledge and insight. I realized a while ago that for some people there is no such thing as work-life balance. My work is my life, so I make it all enjoyable.
I hope to see more humanity in fashion. While it is a business, I hope we can show the goodness in ourselves with what we create.
Karens.
This time next year I hope to be creating something new that I have never even thought of!
