On Monday night, The NYC LGBT Community Center kicked off the first day of Pride Month with its annual Fashion Centered fundraiser.
The community center, based in the West Village, only closes its doors to host one private event onsite each year. With significant backing from the fashion industry, the Fashion Centered raises support for The Center’s broad resources and programming for LGBTQIA+ New Yorkers. This year’s event, which honored Thom Browne with The NYC LGBT Community Center’s Lifetime Achievement Award, was supported by presenting sponsor Pandora, as well as Jean Paul Gaultier, Supreme and Ferragamo.
Related Articles
“Thank you for being honored,” architect and event host Charles Renfro told Browne as the pair mingled by the step-and-repeat, before joining The NYC LGBT Community Center’s chief executive officer Dr. Carla Smith and other members of the event host committee for a group photo.
You May Also Like
Outside in The NYC LGBT Community Center’s courtyard, other guests including June Ambrose, Cass Bird, Jenna Lyons, Brandon Blackwood, Ashlyn Harris, Ann Dexter-Jones and Lourdes Leon took full advantage of the favorable weather and caught up over cocktails.
“Hi Susanne — happy Pride,” said Vivien Yi to Susanne Bartsch, who had just arrived alongside with David Barton.
Later, the crowd made their way up the staircase, past the Keith Haring Bathroom — which features the artist’s “Once Upon a Time” mural — and up to the third floor for dinner.
“ I’d like to say this: Thom’s work and The Center’s work come from a very similar space,” said Janelle Monáe, taking the stage to introduce the evening’s honoree. “They both believe every person deserves to be seen in full, that no one should have to shrink to survive. They understand that when you build a community around shared values, you create something, and that protects people. Something that lasts,” she added. “Thom, this Lifetime Achievement Award is yours. Thank you for showing us it’s never really about the suit. It was always about the soul wearing it.”
While Monáe was dressed in a theatrical runway look from Browne’s latest collection, the designer was wearing his typical uniform — almost.
“ I’ve broken one of the cardinal rules of getting your haircut on the day of an event,” Browne told the crowd. “For evening, I usually put a darker jacket on with lighter trousers, and for some reason, I put the lighter jacket on. And I said to Andrew [Bolton], ‘I think I’m turning into my mother,’ because my mother once went to work with two different colored shoes on,” he added, before clarifying. “ My mother had the best style.
”There’s moments in my life that I do wish my parents were still around, and this is one of those moments that is so important,” Browne said, before launching into his prepared speech. “Looking around the room, I’m reminded that through resilience, we can come together to create change. That using our voices doesn’t mean defining something through words, that action brings change to a world that is divided more than ever, and that our stories are here to stay.”