SMU’s Association of Black Students put on another stellar performance with this year’s fashion show, incorporating four themes, live dance, musical performances and a crew of models sporting their individual styles.

Under this year’s Black History Month theme “Black is…” the show had four parts, each using the theme and finishing the phrase with a different fashion style.

The first theme, “Black is the Blueprint,” touched on appropriated fashion. The second, “Black is Alternative,” centered around streetwear. Next in the order of the show was the theme “Black is Bold,” with models sporting bright colors and outgoing fashion statements. The show concluded with “Black is Elegant,” and featured models strutting across the stage in long dresses and heels.

“To find models, we reached out to the Black community and found Black students who were willing to show their fashion and just express themselves,” said ABS secretary Feaven Fasil. “We wanted the models to take the themes as they wanted, so we left their fashion choices open for them to interpret and feel free to express themselves.”

SMU senior theatre major Kayla Earl hosted the fashion show and has been a member of ABS since spring 2020. The fashion show is a tradition, Earl mentioned, put on every Black History Month.

“The fashion show is a culmination of individuals and what they visually imagine Black looking like,” Earl said. “It’s supposed to highlight the multifaceted, the beautiful, the strange.”

Not only was the fashion show an opportunity to boast the many talents of SMU’s Black community, but it was also a time for friendship and collaboration. Mariah Phelps, a freshman model, said her favorite part of the experience was getting to know everyone and collaborating with the other participants to help with outfit selection.

“Black is dope and Black history is not just in February,” Earl said. “Though we are the most excited about it in February, it’s not just one designated time.”

Watch the Daily Campus’ video coverage of the event here.