The American designer discusses her midwestern upbringing and forging her own path in fashion
Elena Velez is supremely calm for a designer on the verge of her New York Fashion Week debut. “If I stopped to think about the impossibility or improbability of what I'm trying to do – become a fashion designer in New York City with no money, no business experience, no network connections – I would be crippled with discouragement,” the 27-year-old tells AnOther. “So I don't.”
“I grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, as the only child of a single mother who worked as a ship captain,” she continues. “My childhood was spent in spaces that were very industrial and utilitarian – ship yards, docks, engine rooms … I’m sure it has influenced my aesthetic.” Sights like this from her childhood, from the metal industry that is local to Milwaukee, are seen not only in the hardware and buckles of her designs, but even in the destruction and dissection of the fabrics themselves.
A mother of two, Velez looks to the essence of maternity as a representation of the might within women. “My mum is a woman who has had to command respect from men as a profession,” she says. “She also had to assume the role of both mom and dad when I was growing up. Her strength, independence, and unconventional femininity have really inspired me as a person and a designer.”Velez describes her ‘girl’ as a cast of characters.
The functionality and utility of her clothes are offset by the use of gauzy linens in corsets and chemise dresses. Her sharp tailoring is roughened up and re-set, askew. Indeed, Velez prioritises a sense of urgency over perfection and beauty. Her pieces are tied, bonded, fastened and draped to give shelter and protect the bodies they’re on, while maintaining space for vulnerability, at times showing soft flesh that refuses to hide.
“I think the fact that I embrace and reject the notion of an unglamourous midwestern upbringing in my work lends itself to some degree of differentiation from other American designers who might think that creative assimilation is the key to success in a luxury industry.” It’s exactly this unapologetic inclusion of the unexpected that has made Elena Velez’s show one of the most anticipated at New York Fashion Week, and her garments coveted far further than the United States.
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