After the show, he said he was inspired by escapism, but not in the way other designers talk about tropical vacations or spending time in nature. Mohammed and his team were thinking about escaping from the brutalities of America in 2021: The feathers alluded to flying somewhere else far away where Black people are actually treated equitably. “That said, it’s one thing to believe there’s somewhere better, but you also have to engage where you are,” Mohammed added. He and his small team did that through handcraft, picking up new skills like macramé and champlevé to create these pieces from scratch. Early in the pandemic, Mohammed found himself scrolling through endless YouTube videos of makers and crafters. “They were so inspiring to me, because they weren’t waiting for someone to invite them or ask them to make these things,” he says. “They were doing it at home, figuring it out, learning new things. That’s so endemic to Black history and Black culture. Our circumstances have not been ideal, but we’ve made masterful work from it.”
During the show, Mohammed’s models tried on his new jewelry, too, which will be available at top retailers like Net-a-Porter, Saks Fifth Avenue, and Bergdorf Goodman. His garments were never intended to be produced, but the show signaled a new opportunity for Khiry in the world of made-to-order garments and experimental celebrity dressing. “Looking back on my experience and my jewelry, it was never a straightforward path,” Mohammed said. “It’s always been a process of experimentation and growth, and I wanted to start that with other objects.”
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