Willy Chavarria Is Reborn
In true Chavarria fashion, the collection and the ambience paid tribute to the designer’s roots and the symbols of his hometown. Rapper and fellow Los Angeles native YG made an appearance among the faces on the runway. Guests were gifted Willy Chavarria-branded flasks of Don Julio Tequila while Latin music played to the backdrop of the elaborate friezes overhead. The collection evoked Willy’s signature references of the zoot suits of the 1930s and 40s paired with paradoxically timeless and nostalgic sculpted hairstyles, as well as intriguing combinations of sportswear and underwear with fine tailoring and elegant Western hats ornamented with roses.
After the show, I went backstage with office to speak to Willy about the "New Life" of his label.
Hi Willy! Congratulations on such a beautiful show.
Thank you, thank you so much!
Could you tell me about that sculptural hair? It was the first thing that caught my eye.
Any time I do a collection, in the months approaching the show, I work with my stylist, Carlos Nazario, my hair, Joey George and my makeup artist, Marco Castro and my creative partner, Jess Cuevas. We went through 25 different hair options before we landed in that realm.
So it just kind of comes together as it gets closer and closer to the final iteration. Where we landed was making those hairstyles that are both futuristic and referential of the past. And that applies to the entire collection. You know, we see things that are of the moment, like the story of underwear. Then we see incredible tailoring and suits that move from the twenties and thirties years, and the hats, and the sequins.
Yes, the tattered underwear! Can you tell me a little more about that, and why you chose to juxtapose it with those long, extravagant pieces towards the end of the show?
There was a story to the show throughout, and part of that story was about coming out young and fresh… and then the life story of today's youth. When we get to the point of the underwear, it's kind of like where we are right now: it's really fucked up and torn up and we don't feel the best.
Showing ourselves in these old tattered underwear… that just makes us show our vulnerability, you know. Also, I'm launching that line of underwear. That will be for spring 2024.
What were some of your style references or inspirations for the collection?
Definitely the hats are very much a reference to something my grandfather wore, my father wore, you know, the people in my family. It originates in working in the field, the men that work in the fields. It's like the symbol of manhood or machismo. Now the idea of machismo doesn't mean the same as it did before. So that's why we see the hats on women, and we see the hats on all kinds of people, younger people.
I loved that there were a lot more female models in this collection than in past ones. How did you make that decision?
Yeah — often, the way I have done the casting is I would do the style out with the models and dress them according to the personality. But the way I did casting this year, I put all the looks together and then I just chose the model for the look regardless of gender. So every look is fully non binary, it can all be worn by any gender.
You know, we're in 2023. All that doesn't matter anymore. But yeah, there were more female [models] and I love having them in the show. I mean, I love men too. [laughs]
On that note, queerness is such an inherent part of the Willy Chavarria story and brand, but I also noticed heavy aesthetic influences from Catholicism and Christianity — in the show promo, in the garments that looked like vestments, even the frieze in the room. How do you balance the tension between those elements?
For me, the Catholicism and the Christianity is about cultural references, more than it's about, you know, actually going to mass. Although I go to mass, I love music. I love mass because it's so chic.
I've always loved the beauty of Catholicism. I don't like the history of Catholicism, but I always do include references to that in my work.
This show was called “New Life.” How was designing this collection a new beginning for you?
As I've grown as a designer, I've been able to make better quality pieces. I have that privilege now. When I started in 2017, you know, I wasn't working with amazing ateliers or using Italian sequins. I was going to Mood Fabrics to get my fabrics. But now my collections are more elevated, my price points are becoming more elevated.
I really wanted to show Latin culture in the most elegant, glamorous, chic way possible. We had all the music, like Mexican music, Puerto Rican music, Peruvian music and it was all very chic, like you could have been at some cocktail party with your Rolls Royce parked out front.
I see my family members, I see my uncles, I see my aunts. I see my cousins in that show, there are looks in that show that are literally my grandfather — like just pants, open shirt and a hat that smells like, you know, he's been working all day. [laughs]
With your last collection, you talked about feeling like you wanted to focus on craftsmanship because the political messaging in your designs had started to dominate the conversation. This time around, did you still feel that pressure to zero-in on craftsmanship, or do you think you were able to balance those expectations?
I think last season, I was doing something that I wanted to be perceived as the highest level. I really wanted to be seen as a legitimate top tier designer, like Oscar de la Renta or Yves Saint Laurent. I still want to be. But I feel like I did that for validation in a way … I have to say I did. I did it so that people would say, ‘this is a real designer.’And I got that validation. So this collection, I've already got the craftsmanship, I've got the most talented design team.
It's still top tier, but I really dug into my own personal influences and then the cultural references that have built me as a designer. I'm able to do something from the heart that is pure, pure Willy, its own thing. Nobody is doing what we're doing. And I love that. I love it.
