While white designers love to “draw inspiration” from the many cultures of people of color, when it comes to the runway, it’s a sure bet whatever fashions they create (or appropriate) will be seen on white models. Even designers of color often opt for a diverse lineup of models to wear their clothes, but Maki Osakwe is making sure everyone knows who her clothes are intended for by only having Black models wear her fashions.
The Nigerian designer just brought her brand, Maki Oh, to the United States in 2016, and like her fashion week show this past February, yesterday, Osakwe only had Black women walk in her designs during New York Fashion week, which is a rare sight for the notoriously non-inclusive event.
Still, the Maki Oh models were uniquely diverse, displaying a plethora of skin tones, hair colors, textures, and styles — all beautifully matched against a dark ombré lip created with Bobbi Brown’s lip pencil in Chocolate and filled in with the brownish-mauve lipstick shade Telluride, The Cut reported.
We love the message Osakwe is sending through her art as much as we do her fashions. Click through to see all of the Black beauties who walked in the Maki Oh show and the stunning designs they wore.
