Today’s Gypsy Sport show, held on Governors Island, marked the label’s 10th anniversary, but let’s start at the beginning. The weather report signaled a chance of light rain in the afternoon. What we got instead was a downpour that lasted on and off throughout the afternoon, from the moment we set foot on the island until almost two hours later. Everything was wet: the attendees, the seat cushions, the clothes, the staff, my socks. This was the second of two shows this season set on islands around Manhattan, and the second delayed by a thunderstorm. Dear publicists and producers, in the words of that one endlessly memeable Tyra Banks video: “Learn something from this.”
Despite the rain, and despite the hilarious comparisons from showgoers—“It’s giving Burning Man,” “Not The Day After Tomorrow,” “Why is this ferry giving Titanic?”—the show started just an hour and a half late. And the mood was uplifting and joyful. A fellow Gypsy Sport soldier put it best: “It’s kind of funny seeing all the ‘fashion girls’ wet, but Gypsy Sport is a city-girl brand; it rains, you get wet, it’s fine.”
“I’m celebrating the community that we’ve built and the resilience that we all have,” said an undeterred Rio Uribe backstage ahead of the show. The designer had moved his shows to Los Angeles Fashion Week in seasons prior, “but this is our home, it’s our family.” When Uribe broke out onto the scene 10 years ago, his unabashed queerness and brownness challenged the status quo in casting and beyond; his scrappy, idiosyncratic aesthetic represented a unique intersection between Chicano identity, Latinidad, New York–ness, queerness, and Americana. Today’s lineup was a celebration of the many statements Uribe has made over the years: “I started from my very first collection all the way up to 2023 and chose some of my favorite styles and silhouettes to reinterpret,” he said. “It’s not necessarily a retrospective but a look back to look forward.”
There were grungy graffitied and bedazzled ladylike tweed separates, striking macramé knit dresses (one with its hem completely frayed was a particular knockout), some kitschy “I heart NY” fabrications, and a fabulous hoodie dress in all black sequins. Uribe’s signature basketball mesh-jersey dresses returned, this time slinkier and infinitely sexier, ditto his basketball net tank dresses. It’s not always that designers who have found a name through their casting and brand ethos get recognition for their skill in making clothes; Uribe is one who should.
But as long as we’re on the topic, Uribe’s cast included some of the city’s most beloved queer icons: There was RuPaul’s Drag Race twice-runner-up Kandy Muse, drag queen West Dakota, model and downtown It-girl Richie Shazam, members of the Ballroom scene (some of whom vogued down the runway), and, to the crowd’s elation, Connie Fleming. Dominique Jackson closed the show in one of Uribe’s American flag dresses—his way of saying, “We are America too.”
And to continue uplifting and inspiring this community, Uribe has come to a realization: It’s time for a new Gypsy Sport. “This is the last Gypsy Sport show,” the designer said, explaining that he’s planning to rebrand and come back to NYFW next year. “The word gypsy is sensitive in certain cultures, and since the brand ethos is unifying and inclusive, we just can’t have that word.” Is there a new name? Not yet, but Uribe is open to suggestions.
Look 20, worn by Yves Mathieu, featured a T-shirt with artwork by Aya Brown honoring the model and artist Tommy “Playboy” Blackwell, who was found dead this past April at 23 years old. Blackwell was beloved in the community and a muse to many designers including Uribe, Luar’s Raul Lopez, and Telfar Clemens. “Tommy was one of my models; she was a sister of the brand and a family member. I want to continue inspiring and propelling our message of unity that is now being adopted by bigger brands and companies,” Uribe said of what’s next. For as long as he continues to put community first, he and Gypsy Sport—or whatever it’s called next—have only blue skies to look forward to.
