The picture show: NPR

The shows have returned.

New York Fashion Week brought us all of the best looks and trends of the season.

Five photographers from the Black Women Photographers collective took portraits during this year’s New York Fashion Week, which took place September 8-12.

These photographs tell the story behind each person’s fashion choices, from self-expression to self-preservation to transformation.

Janee smith

“Fashion is just an art you wear,” model Parish James told photographer Janeé Smith.

Fashion is not about the biggest brand, the most expensive pieces, or the prettier appearance than anyone else. Fashion is about being able to express your own creative view of the world with just the threads you put on for. the day, ”Parish said. .

“Fashion can be a way to tell your audience a story about you, regardless of the size of that audience. Basically, fashion is like your elevator speech to the world. So a word of advice: make your own original.”

Left: Yaemi Matias

“Fashion – for us – is the simplest form of self-expression,” Sahra Warsame told photographer Yaemi Matias. “It is the ability to represent ourselves and our identity.”

“Wearing the hijab, fashion as a form of personal identity is a concept that was introduced to us from an early age,” Warsame said.

“As sisters we have always had a similar sense of style, so we have been inspired by each other. Over the years, we have each developed our own sense of style to suit each other better, but we inspire each other. still each other from time to time. “

Law: Valerie Pugh

Models Lola and Pierrah told photographer Valerie Pugh how they walked the Miami catwalks together.

Now, whenever they’re both in New York, they go online.

“It’s all about empowerment, really,” Lola Chelo told Pugh when asked what it was like to walk with Pierrah again.

“Whenever I’m next to her, I want to match her energy, from hair to appearance.”

Sade Fasanya

“My grandfather was a tailor, my great-grandfather was a tailor, and my great-great-grandfather was a tailor.” model Rap Sarmiento told photographer Sade Fasanya.

“And they passed down a 5-generation pair of tailoring scissors that I inherited, so it’s pretty special.”

Fasanya asked Sarmiento about the importance of fashion in his life.

“My grandmother taught me to sew, so it surrounded me,” he told her.

“It was special to have these scissors because it was 150 years of talent and energy that was passed down that ended up with me.”

“It’s something that’s kind of in my blood.”

Hanna Wondmagegn

Gabriela Lopez told photographer Hanna Wondmagegn that she uses fashion as a way to confidently present who she is to the world.

“Fashion and style to me are two halves of the same piece. They are vitally important to our ability to express ourselves, to express our beliefs, to share how we want to present ourselves to the world and to the world. ourselves, ”she said.

“I alone have the power to shape myself, to shape my wardrobe and to shape the way I express myself to myself in the mirror or to those who see me when I go out on the streets.

“Fashion is power and when I wear what I want I feel powerful.”

Growing up, Hannah Miao’s mother made dresses for special events and this inspired Miao to design her own clothes.

“I crochet, embroider and sew and it really helped me to be very intentional in my fashion choices and to think of some really special pieces that speak to me,” Miao told photographer Hanna Wondmagegn .

Wearing a piece she crocheted and a skirt she bought in a clothing swap, Miao’s pieces reflect the stories passed down by previous owners and the stories behind her designs.

Huynh (left) told Wondmagegn that fashion has been and continues to be a way of building self-confidence and self-expression.

“I have always struggled with my body image personally and it has always left me feeling insecure, self-confident and shy in front of the camera, but lean towards the fashion world and embarking on this journey to find my personal sense of style was only a truly transformative change. process, ”Huynh said.

“There’s just something about conserving your wardrobe, finding clothes to wear every day, trying to feel comfortable in what you’re wearing.”

“It is all like a process that makes you feel seen not only by the world but by yourself as well.”

Black women photographers is a global community and directory of black female photographers founded by a multimedia journalist Polly Irungu. Learn more here.