Black In Fashion: Day 4 Stephen Burrows

EDITED BY MELODY BOYKIN
Pictured: Stephen Burrows wears his signature
T-shirt-NICK MACHALABA

    Do you know which black pioneer designer holds the key to their city? Well, let’s chat about Stephen Burrows, the Studio 54 icon who respectfully earned the key to his city. Stephen Burrows was born September 15, 1943, in Newark, NJ. His fascination started at just 8 years old when he took his grandpa’s sewing machine and made a dress for a doll. Stephen Burrows is most notable for being the youngest person to show at The Battle of Versailles and the youngest person to win a COTY at 17 years old!

     Stephen saw fashion as “toys for adults” and his clientele (mainly Studio 54 goers) shared his sentiment! If you spotted any of these celebrities: The Supremes, Farrah Fawcett, Bette Middler, Cher, etc. at the disco in those days there’s a chance they were wearing Mr. Burrows fashions. His asymmetric rebellious and fun fashions erase time and inspire you to dust off the platform shoes and get your back up off the wall and onto the dance floor! In 2016 Stephen Burrows was given the key to the city of his hometown.

Pictured: Stephen Burrows 2019
Pictured: Stephen Burrows
for Bendel, New York

Photo Credits

First image (top)
Caption: Stephen Burrows wears his signature T-shirt-NICK MACHALABA,
Pictured: Stephen Burrows
Photographer: Nick Machalaba
Via: Women’s Wear Daily

Second image: (left)
Caption: THE INNOVATIVE DESIGNER AND FASHION ICON SHARES HIS REFLECTIONS ON HIS CREATIVE CAREER AND WHY TEAMWORK AND COMMUNITY ARE ESSENTIAL TO SUCCESS.
Pictured: Stephen Burrows 2019
Via: Custom Collaborative

Third image: (right)
Pictured: Stephen Burrows for Bendel, New York
Via: Philadelphia Museum of Art