Beyond Trend Runway Show
Creative Growth Art Center
355 24th St.
Oakland
June 22, 2024
On a glittery, gold-colored runway taped to Valdez Street near Lake Merritt, a woman in a billowing white dress balanced a hat topped with knitted balls of yarn in every color of the rainbow, reminiscent of a fashionable bowl of fruit. She vamped for an adoring crowd thronged alongside the street as they cheered her every step.
Behind her, the procession didn’t stop. A woman in a pantsuit covered in equally bright panels of fabric threw her arms in the air in joy as another woman in a purple wig pushed her wheelchair down the runway. Spilling out of the packed main room of Creative Growth Arts Center and passing under a canopy of balloons, the models were clearly ready to give a show to the hundreds-strong crowd.
Now in its 50th year, Creative Growth — an Oakland nonprofit that fosters artists with disabilities — was celebrating its 11th Beyond Trend runway show, and the community was out in full force. Situated right by Creative Growth at the corner of 24th and Valdez Streets, the indoor fashion show spilled out onto the blocked-off street, nearly into the Valdez Street Vibes festival just down the block.
There was plenty of a party atmosphere to go around. Runway models with canes, in wheelchairs, walking on their own or with a partner, strutted their stuff. All shapes, sizes, colors, and ages were welcome, and the ruling caveat seemed to be: Be joyful, and celebrate yourself.
Bold, bright pops of color adorned nearly every outfit. One model wore a Darth Vader mask; he vamped for the crowd’s cheers unlike any Star Wars character I’d ever seen. That was the beauty of the afternoon; there were no rules but to have fun. Spilling out from the Creative Growth’s building, which was packed with supporters inside, the street fashion show outside dialed up the color under the afternoon sun. There were no pretenses to be found, only the love and adoration of the arts community and the clearly overjoyed models enjoying their moment in the spotlight. Set to party jams by Mary J. Blige, Whitney Houston, and Abba, the models were adorned in an array of fabrics, baubles, costumes, and above all, color. Glittery gowns, flashy capes, floppy hats, and hand-drawn art ruled this runway. While some models seemed focused, others took dramatics pauses to preen and flaunt, lifting their arms up to steady, raucous applause.
Creative Growth supports over 140 artists who work in a variety of media. The non-profit has shown its work and partnered with everyone from the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art to the Smithsonian to the American Folk Art Museum, offering creative and financial support to creative communities with exhibits worldwide. But it got its start in the heart of Oakland, and its home remains in the 12,000-square-foot studio that was once an auto repair shop.
The fashion show was only a part of the day’s festivities, which included a cake cutting, an artists’ pop-up shop inside the studio, and some post-runway celebrating, as the models milled about with friends and family. It was the kind of party anyone could get behind: A community celebrating the beauty of being alive.
