In celebration of the exhibition Patrick Kelly: Runway of Love and Black History Month, the Kelly Initiative and the de Young paired up to invite creatives across fields to share a sketch inspired by Kelly and his designs. Here, Kibwe Chase-Marshall, cofounder of the Kelly Initiative, speaks with designer Shawna McGee about her sketch and Kelly’s legacy.
It’s gouache paint with a little pencil highlight and a little ink pen highlight. I came up in the era when we had to paint our sketches. When you keep painting, your illustrations in other media—like marker or digital—improve.
Patrick was a very humorous person; everything was chic but also tongue in cheek. He used things like images of the “mammy” or the Eiffel Tower in his work, so I decided to use his image in a similar manner within my sketch. I decided that he needed to be glorified. I accented the garment with his favorite trims: buttons and stones. And he LOVED denim, so that’s why I did the denim skirt and boot.
I remember him from [our] school, [Parsons]. I remember him saying, “I’m heading to Paris!” And I was like, “You go, boy! I’ll see you there!” We never connected when I got to Paris because I went with the school and he was doing his own thing. He inspired me; he was one of my first friends to get out there and do it, despite the odds. He’s always been an inspiration to me, his love and his sense of humor. I always kind of keep that with me.
Shawna McGee’s love of fashion is a deeply personal one. The Detroit native’s talents flourished while she explored design at a specialized high school, then took flight while she studied fashion more formally at Parsons School of Design in New York. She went on to design for 7th Avenue brands with a strong focus on dressing career-minded, high-taste women. Part of a wave of small-business design mavericks who are revitalizing Detroit’s cultural landscape, McGee has recently returned to her hometown to launch a collection that fuses her love of illustration with her knowledge of wardrobe essentials. @smcgeecollection
Kibwe Chase-Marshall cut his professional teeth as an apparel designer, working within the studios of some of 7th Avenue's most influential brands (Michael Kors, Isaac Mizrahi, Gap Inc.), before carving out a space in the editorial community as a contributing writer and market editor (Town & Country, Paper, Elle.com). Since 2018, he has diligently operated as an equity advocate, most recently cofounding the Kelly Initiative, a four-point, industry-evolving plan to increase access to opportunities for Black fashion professionals. @byanyseamnecessary
Patrick Kelly: Runway of Love is on view at the de Young museum from October 23, 2021 to April 24, 2022.
