Considering how long fashion brand Telfar has been operating, it’s surprising it's still pigeonholed as emerging. Since 2005 New York-based Telfar Clemens has been redefining the meaning of unisex clothing. In the concrete, this means fashioning new silhouettes, creating items that defy simple definitions and holding a mirror up to the absurdity of the industry. So, it’s only with a touch of irony that the label won the equivalent of a fashion Oscar, CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund award, earlier this year and have since been hailed the ‘fashion insider’ brand to know.
Who’s Behind The Brand?
Telfar Clemens. He skipped fashion school, studied business and formed a brand that survived a tough recession, throughout this, he has championed aesthetics and attitudes that are now exerting influence on the world at large.
What’s The Hype?
In the hands of Telfar, trends are a laughable concept something that are never followed, only written about as a reaction to the label’s work. The man himself describes his clothes as ‘horizontal, democratic, universal’ and uses them as an opportunity to explore and twist our understanding of nudes and neutrals. While the concept sounds complex, the reality is gender-unspecified basics, like shorts, t-shirts, sweaters and sweatpants, with cut-outs or cropped sleeves and elongated bodies. Familiar items are elevated from the every day in creative new ways. Collars are sewn on backwards, sleeves detach, and logos are cut-out to let the model’s skin act as the emblem.
It’s a one-two punch as not only is the aesthetic inventive but the brand’s principals lie in the right place. Clemens recently created a capsule collection of unisex-unforms with fast-food joint White Castle for their 10,000 team members. And, then they sold it to the hungry public too before giving all profits to the Robert F. Kennedy Human Rights Liberty and Justice fund to pay bail for minors held on Rikers Island.
Who Wears It?
Solange called on Telfar to outfit her dancers and herself in earth-toned costumes for a one-off multi-sensory dance performance of A Seat At The Table at the Guggenheim Museum. Where all other attendees wore white, Solange and her performers wore a-symmetric jersey tops and leggings. It’s not just the famous Knowles that’s booked, but Tinashe, Kelela and Selah Marley too.
If You’re To Buy One Thing What Is It?
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This article originally appeared on The Debrief.