How fashion designer Marrisa Wilson stepped into the metaverse

A new generation of emerging Black designers are hitting the runway this New York Fashion Week, and Marrisa Wilson is a standout among them. The womenswear designer, known for her funky prints and cool-girl aesthetic, debuted her autumn/winter 2022 collection this week. We caught up with Wilson to discuss her design journey, the brand, and how she’s making sure there are spaces for women – and in particular women of colour – to be able to explore, experiment, and play in the metaverse.

We are both first-generation Guyanese Americans. How did your experience of growing up in an immigrant family influence your creative aspirations? 
‘My family owned a business when I was younger, so I approached fashion as a business from the beginning. My parents were successful, but they hustled. They came here in their early twenties. When I think about what we were able to have as a result of them coming to a new country, by themselves, at such a young age… it’s remarkable. So, when I finished school and started my line, it didn’t feel crazy to launch a business, especially with the support of my family. My dad still gives me advice.’ 
 
How did you get started as a fashion designer? 
‘Growing up reading magazines such as Teen Vogue, I got a sense of the kind of designer I wanted to be. 
 
‘When I started working, there weren’t many Black creative directors or chief creative officers I could look up to. When I became a senior designer at 26, I looked around and there was no one else above me that looked like me at this company – and most other companies, too. The pipeline of talent is incredibly important: women and people of colour need mentors to guide them.’ 

Can you describe who the Marrisa Wilson New York woman is? 
‘In the beginning, I had a high-end, very luxurious girl in mind. Almost everything was evening. Now, I focus on what I want to wear: cool, easy, and effortless items. I work with familiar silhouettes and focus on textures and prints. The MWNY girl is cool, she doesn’t try too hard. You know that girl when you see her, she threw something on, and it looks amazing – that’s the girl I dress.’ 
 
How did you build your brand, and were there any challenges you had to overcome as a Black designer to gain momentum? 
‘It’s exhausting. It’s one thing to be an artist, but additionally as a Black woman, to say “This is my point of view, but then this is my identity, this is my hair…” Putting all those things into a collection is challenging. This industry is very cut-throat: sometimes people are into it, and then sometimes you get a lot of ‘no’s.  
 
‘I’ve been working on my line since 2016, but my autumn/winter 2021 collection was the first to take off as part of the Black in Fashion Council showroom. Now, stores, press, and retailers are starting to see what I was continuously showing.’ 

How has the convergence of our physical and digital identities shaped your new collection?
‘We’re incorporating NFTs in the show. During the livestream, there were three digital-only NFTs projected onto the runway. The last look is a physical garment that’s connected to an NFT. I’ve animated the hand-drawn prints from my dresses and tops, bringing them into the digital space with animation and blockchain technology.
 
‘Last year, billions of dollars were made in NFTs – mostly by white men. It’s important for women of colour to be educated and to participate. If we don’t show our point of view in spaces – digital or physical – someone else is going to do it on our behalf and they’re going to make money from it. I want to encourage creators and women to take ownership of their work.’  
  
Where would you like to see the MWNY brand go next? 
‘I love shoes, so footwear is definitely something I’d like to play with. From a collaboration standpoint, a footwear partnership would be a dream.’