Slashed By Tia designer Teni Adeoloa recently unveiled her Spring/Summer 2020 collection in New York City. The presentation with heavy inspirations from the French Revolution was made up of women painters, parrots and most importantly a diverse cast of models. The modern range was filled with a material Adeoloa has become known to utilize in her designs, tulle. But beyond her sticking true to herself, she also experimented quite a bit and produced sleek suiting, textured two-piece sets and chic silk separates.
Titled the "Graduation Celebration," the range featured nods to Teni’s recent travels to France. This was apparent in a pastel yellow tweed suit worn with an eccentric hat and a striking teal tweed two-piece set. Additionally, the latest line pays homage to her recent graduation from The School of Fashion at Parsons The New School. It was refreshing to see Teni stepping away from what she is becoming widely known for creating. In the past, her work has been seen on the likes of SZA, Gigi Hadid and Dua Lipa. Throughout the presentation, global DJ and influencer Amrit spinned tunes ranging from Saweetie to classical music.
Ahead of the show, we received a firsthand peak at the makeup and hair looks that were set to debut. Accompanying the head-turning looks were glossy eyelids, natural hair, intricate face masks, slicked back ponytails and more.
Get an exclusive breakdown of Teni Adeoloa’s inspiration behind her Slashed By Tia SS20 show by reading our interview below.
Where did you get inspiration for your SS20 “Graduation Celebration” presentation?
My inspiration was predominately from the French Revolution. I went to Paris earlier in June. It was such an amazing, life changing experience. The thing about the French Revolution, the people who evolved right after it shifted and shaped culture. We have people like Josephine Baker that evolved after it, so I printed her face on a shirt. We have Alexander Dumas who wrote The Three Musketeers, who was half black which people didn’t know at the time. I’m just trying to keep rewriting history through fashion. I’ve sort of shifted from the Renaissance to the French Revolution.
How did your design process differ from your previous collections?
So for this one I first of all wanted everything to be perfect and high quality because ultimately I want to be a couture designer. I sourced my fabrics from all over the world, I was ordering things from India and I was ordering latex from Russia. I got the best fabrics that I possibly could.
Was it an intentional choice for you to feature a diverse cast of women in your show? Why?
Yes. My whole thing is diversity, I feel like the fashion industry still has a very, very, very long way to go. Especially the bigger luxury designers. So, I’m always going to have a cast with women of color. Because one, I’m a woman of color; and two, I’m a part of the new generation that’s pushing things the right way.
Will you continue to present unconventionally outside of New York Fashion Week’s schedule?
No, I actually decided to have this presentation not in the fashion calendar. I definitely will be taking part in fashion week. I’m looking at Paris for 2021, the dream is to present in Milan.
What about your studies will you bring with you as you move forward in your fashion career?
I’m a bit of a nerd actually, I loved school. I’m really sad that I’m done with school. The school I went to in particular, The New School at Parsons was incredible. All the professors were part time in their field so they knew exactly what they were doing. A lot of people were like "college doesn’t teach you anything it doesn’t prepare you for the real world." My college definitely did. Just things as little as being able to word an email in such a way that people respect you and treat you the right way. I studied culture and media so I learned a lot of things that people look for today. College definitely helped me and pushed the business aspect of Slashed by Tia.
What changes do you hope to make happen in the next few years through your work?
One [is] getting models of color into these luxury runway shows. Pushing real artistry. Because today a lot of people want to design just to design or want to because of Instagram. But, I’m an artist myself and I definitely want to push real artistry. I definitely want to have a Slashed By Tia couture line. But I will still keep the affordable clothing because I know that there are a lot of girls my age like myself who wouldn’t be able to afford it. Definitely want to dress someone for the Met Gala in the next two to four years.
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