San Francisco that guests wearing sparkling dresses mix with others wearing streetwear or workplace attire straight out of the day without anyone finding it odd.
This week, the Human Rights Foundation’s Artisan Fashion event at the de Young museum, which was made possible by Fashion Incubator San Francisco, and the annual Art Bash fundraiser hosted by the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art showcased the city’s eclectic spirit and fashion sense.
A diverse mix of socialites, artists, attendees, and business executives were present at the SFMOMA event on Wednesday. They were armed with cocktails, a healthy appreciation of art, and outfits that spanned from high-end designers to streetwear, hoodies, and sneakers.
Above the din on the first floor, on the second level, was a sold-out VIP dinner. A cameo from Jeffrey Gibson’s Dior Lady Art installation, “I can do whatever I choose,” was shown on one table, and attire from Alexander McQueen to Sanchez-Kane of Mexico was on other tables.
Bob Fisher, the chairman of Gap Inc. and the chairman of the museum’s board of trustees, said a few remarks to open the meal. Fisher’s difficult job was to calm down an especially raucous group of people while wearing an Etro suit.
He remarked, “I do a lot of things at this museum, but it seems like the thing I’m best at is getting 500 wonderful people to sit down and be quiet. They’re all very excited about being at Art Bash.” “It just goes to show how happy people are to see each other that it was so difficult to get everyone to sit.”
The comment strikes a chord in a city still suffering from the COVID-19 hangover as well as other issues like business closings and the continuous stream of tech layoffs in neighboring Silicon Valley.
Despite this, or maybe because of it, there was a particularly lively vibe to the place.
According to sociologist, author, and frequent Art Bash attendee Sarah Thornton, “San Francisco has been so slow to come out of the pandemic,” she told WWD. It seems like there were more people at the dinner than ever before, even though it’s only recently that many feel like things are kind of returning to normal. Of course, there are some things that may never return to normal. It seemed larger.
In order to attend the event and honor her friend, renowned installation artist and filmmaker Sir Isaac Julien, Thornton took a detour from writing “Tits Up: What Sex Workers, Milk Bankers, Plastic Surgeons, Bra Designers, and Witches Tell Us About Breasts,” her impending book release.
He modified “Ten Thousand Waves,” from 2010, and “Statues Never Die,” from 2022, for installations made especially for Art Bash. Other artists included renowned photographer Richard Misrach, whose “Solo to Symphony” activation featured performances by the acclaimed Alonzo King Lines Ballet dancers, and Chelsea Ryoko Wong, whose pop-up activation, “Many Moons I’ve Dreamt of You,” was created to a soundtrack provided by DJ Alex Shen of Lower Grand Radio.
Rapper Tierra Whack, DJ Sazon Libre, and other artists provide art-driven rooms and party vibes for Art Bash, which is more than just one event. After enjoying short ribs and participating in a simultaneous auction, VIP attendees were taken to a private after-dinner lounge.
The event was once again sponsored by Valentino in addition to Christie’s, AT&T, Bloomberg, and Bank of America. Without adding the auction, Fisher claims the museum collected $3 million through sponsorships, donations, and ticket sales.
San Francisco Art Fashion
The next evening, a completely different kind of event was held at the de Young, one of the city’s fine arts museums, which is located in Golden Gate Park. The Human Rights Foundation (HRF) organized this event, which was more of a private get-together with assistance from Fashion Incubator San Francisco (FiSF).
The museum’s “Fashioning San Francisco” display allowed visitors to browse the city’s 100 years of designer styles and couture as part of Thursday’s Artisan Fashion theme.
Thanks to Snapchat’s augmented reality technology, which powers physical mirrors that let guests visually try on outfits from designers like Valentino and Yves Saint Laurent to Kaisik Wong, the program looked both forward and backward. For the first time, a museum is showcasing Snap Inc.’s augmented reality technology with this event, which runs through August 11.
As they continued, they discovered that they were at a cocktail party featuring tables showcasing designer-led firms FiSF has nurtured, such DiarraBlu, on one side and hors d’oeuvres, wine, and beer on the other.
Speaking to the assembly, FiSF president and board chair Jeanine Barnett Silberblatt disclosed that the company is not only assisting with the celebration but also working with the Human Rights Foundation on the “Wear Your Values” program, an effort designed to bring attention to moral concerns in the fashion industry.
The organization’s primary goal has always been to encourage local designers. However, “as a result of technological advancements, our designers who lived here in the Bay Area had an increasingly global presence,” she noted. FiSF was motivated to open up and merge its community with HRF after observing that its peers were becoming more and more dedicated to helping communities at home.
“Why would a human rights group be interested in fashion, much less create a whole program around it?” The director of legal and programs at HRF, Michelle Gulino, stated. “Because there exists another world where millions of people labor ceaselessly under the supervision of people who are effectively their slave masters, hidden behind this one of beauty, glamour, and creativity.”
The links between worldwide human rights crimes and San Francisco fashion alarmed HRF, she continued. This led the organization to establish Wear Your Values in 2017, focusing on topics such as the abolition of forced labor, such as that which was applied to the persecuted Uighur people in China, and environmentally responsible sourcing and production.
These are the “hidden social costs” associated with the fashion industry, according to Wear Your Values’ Claudia Bennett.
The team has been developing a new database to make it simple for consumers to identify and support brands who uphold ethics. It intends to release it in the upcoming year.
Bennett declared on stage, “Fashion is a form of storytelling, a form of expression, and the reason we are all here today is because it can be a form of activism.”
