On April 25, 2026, the Ace Hotel in New York hosted a Fashion Show Designer’s Contest that went beyond the simple aesthetics, turning the catwalk into a space of attention and meaning. Produced and presented by François Alexander and Aramis Alexander, the event brought together emerging designers and an international audience around a cause that still struggles to get the visibility it deserves: the sickle anemia.
The basis of the initiative is a commitment that has lasted for over thirty years. The charity – founded in Belgium by Mireille Zitu Mpanda Nzielo – was born to bring light on a genetic disease that affects the hemoglobin of red blood cells, causing chronic anemia, intense pain, organ damage and a significant reduction in life expectancy. Despite its gravity, it is still little known.
The idea is to use fashion to create attention. “Beauty and fashion capture the look,” shared Mireille Zitu Mpanda Nzielo. “And it is precisely at that moment that awareness finds its light. ”
Seven designers presented their collections: Camila Sarasty, Stacy Angela, Tanga, Heather Royal, Nailah, Chiara Carrasquilla and Paula Jewel, the latter successful winner of the ection thanks to her works that have distinguished themselves by originality and expressive force.
Beyond the competition, the evening revealed how fashion can become language. In a city like New York, where the image contributes to defining perception, the catwalk becomes a tool capable not only to show style, but to pay attention to stories that deserve to be seen.
The Italian note of the evening – embodied by the Italian-American model Nati Belluccia, of Sicilian origins – has strengthened the international spirit of the event, remembering how cultural identities, when they meet, can amplify messages that exceed each border.
In the end, the evening was not only a competition, but a meeting point between different worlds – fashion and awareness, aesthetics and meaning. Here, the style was not limited to telling itself: it illuminated.
L’articolo When fashion becomes light proviene da IlNewyorkese.
