10 YEARS OF SKINGRAFT
Skingraft Celebrates 10th Year With Fashion Performance in DTLA
In recent years, Los Angeles label Skingraft has been showing its men’s and women’s collections at New York Fashion Week. But to celebrate the label’s 10th anniversary, designer Jonny Cota and his brother and company cofounder, Christopher Cota, hosted a fashion show and party in downtown Los Angeles on Aug. 26.
The RVCC private club inside the Reserve Lofts set the scene for the high-voltage performance. Rather than a traditional runway show, dancers were dressed in the latest collection, titled Primal. In a performance choreographed by Danny Dolan, the dancers were set inside a circle surrounded by cool-white neon lights. As they whirled past, guests got a glimpse of the collection, which stayed close to Skingraft’s roots. Using a palette of black, white and gray with a pop of one color, a deep burgundy, Cota offered layerable pieces featuring plenty of subtle details. There was a double-layer cutaway coat with sharply angled labels and quilted detailing and an elongated bomber jacket with top-stitched leather sleeves. There were leather jackets and color-blocked knits in black and gray layered over leggings, shorts or slouchier trouser styles. Two oversized styles proved perfect for the performance—a leather-trimmed black poncho that ended in a trio of white stripes and an oversize white shirt with a hem that hung to the model’s knees.
The show was followed by a butoh dance performance by Austin Westbay followed by LA drag performer Squeaky Blonde, who sang Nina Simone’s “Wild Is the Wind” to close out the evening.
The cavernous RVCC space also housed an installation of archival Skingraft pieces and a pop-up store where guests could purchase pieces from the Primal collection.
