Dapper Dan Welcomed a Select Group to His Storied Harlem Atelier

“Skin is your first garment,” Dapper Dan proclaimed to the small group assembled before him. Slouched in an emerald dining room chair, the designer, flanked by Paloma Elsesser and Vogue’s Chioma Nnadi, held his audience in rapt attention.

Rain fell down on East Harlem, but the high ceilings of Dapper Dan’s atelier shut out the gloom and chill. On Thursday night, an assortment of celebrated editors, designers, and philanthropists migrated uptown to kick off New York Fashion Week with an evening of reflection, conversation, and serious style.

Emerging in the 1970s, Dapper Dan, born Daniel Day, introduced hip-hop to high fashion. From selling clothing out of his car, Day grew a thriving business. The night began downstairs in his scarlet showroom. Rails of fantasy suits, enormous capes, and shimmering skirts dazzled the eye. Yards of metallic and jewel-toned cloth flaunted Gucci logos. The countless G’s embroidered into the fabric paid homage to logomania, a trend synonymous with Dapper Dan.

As guests gushed over the clothes, waiters passed around Stumblees, a delightful concoction of Casa Dragones tequila, lemon juice, and honey. Colorful hors d’oeuvres created by Yann Nury were devoured.

Upstairs, the group settled into a grandly proportioned parlor. Day’s stories, artfully prompted by Elsesser and Nnadi, formed an oral history of New York and its political and aesthetic shifts over the past half-century. At once comic (bemoaning the rappers who owe him money) and poignant (stressing the difficulties those men endured), Day relished his hard-earned victory while acknowledging the brilliant creatives who fell victim to larger racial and economic structures.

“The dream would be to bring Harlem downtown,” Day said. “The even bigger dream would be to bring downtown uptown.”

The designer certainly accomplished the latter dream. Legendary editors such as Tonne Goodman and Hamish Bowles, as well as society fixtures like Sterling McDavid and Mona Patel, were among the luminaries gathered to listen and learn.

Fashion’s embrace of the designer, now 75, is recent and not without controversy. For decades, Day feared police raids for his illegal use of logos. After each shutdown, the designer began again and created clothing that captured the social aspirations of the moment.

In 2017 Alessandro Michele produced a jacket nearly identical to one Dapper Dan produced for Diane Dixon in 1989. Where Dapper Dan had placed the Louis Vuitton logo, Michele put the Gucci G. The uproar on social media was immediate. Later that year, the Italian house partnered with Dapper Dan and opened the Lenox Avenue atelier.

Day, so long the enfant terrible, now rules as an elder statesman, whose long influence on the culture is not only acknowledged but celebrated. With his children and grandchildren, Day runs a company that retains its loyal customers while attracting a new generation of fans. His daughter, Danique, appeared visibly moved as she watched her father muse about his remarkable journey. Last year, Day commanded an entire table at the Met Gala.

The exploration continued back downstairs. Unconcerned by the drizzle (the two floors are unconnected), guests drank Mod Sélection Champagne and tried on the fantastical pieces. Even for those who fail to follow its ebb and flow, fashion serves a central, sociological purpose: Clothing allows the wearer to show the world who they are. Within the velvet walls of the Harlem atelier, lined with brilliant fabrics, the options seem glittering and unlimited.