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Elena Velez

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Elena Velez
Elena Velez at the Met Gala, 2023
Born
Elena Velez

(1994-09-10) September 10, 1994 (age 30)
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S.
Alma materCentral Saint Martins, Parsons School of Design
OccupationFashion Designer
SpouseAndreas Emenius
Children2
Websitewww.elenavelez.com Edit this at Wikidata

Elena Velez is an American fashion designer and creative from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, based in New York City.[1] Her work is known for its synthesis of metalsmith and high fashion and has been featured in the V&A Museum[2] and Barbican Centre.[3] Velez was a semi-finalist for the 2024 LVMH prize and the CFDA's 2022 Emerging Designer of the Year.

Described by Vogue as "explosive and aggressive",[4] Velez's work has been inspired by the aesthetics of the American Rust Belt, and she has been closely associated with scenes connected to Peter Thiel and the new far-right.[5] Themes in her work include deconstruction,[6] "apocalyptic anti-heroines" [7], and alternative construction methods, which include salvaged materials.[8] Velez coins her visual identity as "aggressively delicate" and anti-fragile.[9]

Early life and education

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Of Puerto Rican heritage[6] but raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Velez claims in recent interviews that the "industrial" nature of her "nontraditional upbringing" as the only child to a single mother who is a ship's captain on the Great Lakes influenced her current artistic identity, which she says draws heavily on "the relationship between femininity and force".[10] With a beginning interest in design from early childhood, the first documentation of her developments appear in local TV news as a teenager in 2010.[11]

Velez studied at Parsons Paris from 2013 to 2015 and graduated from Parsons School of Design in 2018 with a BFA in fashion design and minor in creative entrepreneurship.[12][1] Additionally in 2020 she received a Graduate Diploma in fashion design from Central Saint Martins in London.[1] Her BFA thesis collection was shown at VFILES Season 10 Runway,[13] and London Fashion Week, as a guest of the Swedish Fashion Council.[14]

Career

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In 2019 Velez's work was exhibited as a Teen Vogue 2019 Generation Next designer curated by Editor in Chief of Vogue Anna Wintour.[15] Her work has received coverage in Business of Fashion,[16][17] Women's Wear Daily,[18] WGSN,[19][20][13][21] and other publications.

In February, 2021, Elena Velez Industries Inc. was founded with investment support from venture capital firms Gener8tor, and CSA Partners.[22]

Velez has dressed celebrities including Taylor Swift,[23] Solange Knowles,[24] Ethel Cain,[25] Julia Fox, Charli XCX, Eartheater Doja Cat, Grimes, Anna Delvey,[26] Teyana Taylor, Tinashe,[27] Jenna Ortega,[28] and others.[29][30][31][32]

In 2022, Velez won American Emerging Designer of the Year at the CFDA Fashion Awards.[33][34] In March 2023, she was inducted as a member of the Council of Fashion Designers of America.[35]

Velez attended the 2023 Met Gala as a guest of Balenciaga. For the occasion, she created a crackle medium screen print ink-gown for the artist Sasha Gordon as a nod to Gordon's painting career.[36]

As of 2024, Velez is a creative fellow of the Foundation Against Intolerance and Racism.[37][non-primary source needed]

According to the Washington Post, Velez has "aligned herself with the unsavory flavor of a tendentious downtown New York crowd, whose podcasters, media personalities and fashion- and art-adjacent figures rose to prominence under the aegis of 'Dimes Square'". The scene is known for it's "reactionary politics and associations with Peter Thiel." [38]

In February 2024 Velez hosted controversial EVSALON001 [39], which drew on Margaret Mitchell's Gone With The Wind. The Washington Post criticized the salon as "problematic" and "dangerously cheesy". Sohrab Ahmari referred to the presentation as a "weird racial" variation of the "Alt-right".[40]

In 2025 Velez collaborated with controversial streaming platform OnlyFans[41] and designed the costumes for The National Ballet of Canada.[42]

Awards

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  • Recipient, Joe & Clara Tsai Foundation; 2025 Revitalize Brooklyn Grant, New York, 2025 [43]
  • Semi Finalist, LVMH Prize, Paris, 2024
  • The Dazed 100 List curated by Ib Kamara, 2023
  • Semi Finalist, Emerging Designer/ Brand of the Year; Latin American Fashion Awards, 2023 [44]
  • Winner, Fashion Trust US Sustainability Award, New York 2023 [47][48]
  • Winner, Best Emerging Designer; CFDA Fashion Awards, New York, 2022 [49]
  • Recipient, IMG Fashion Alliance Grant, New York, 2022 [51]
  • Winner,VFILES Season 10 Runway, New York, 2018 [53]
  • Finalist, Swedish Fashion Council CTF Award, London 2018 [54]

Museum acquisitions

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Collections

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  • YR006 - Leech, Feb 9. 2025[58]
  • YR005 - La Pucelle, Sep 10. 2024[59]
  • YR004 - The Longhouse, Sep. 2023[60]
  • YR003 - How's My Driving?, Feb. 2023[61]
  • YR002 - In Glass, Sep. 2022[62]
  • YR001 - Maidenhood And Its Labors, Feb. 2022[63]
  • YR000 - Rinascita, Sep. 2021[64]
  • Homecoming, 2019[65]
  • Vessel, 2019[66]
  • _And Carry On, 2018[8]

Salons

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  • EVSALON001: Tomorrow is Another Day, Feb. 2024[39]

References

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  1. ^ a b c "statement | contact". elenavelez. Archived from the original on 12 August 2020. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  2. ^ a b Rodgers, Daniel (1 July 2024). "Taylor Swift Has Left The UK (For Now), But 16 Of Her Outfits Stayed Behind". British Vogue. Retrieved 3 July 2024.
  3. ^ a b "Barbican announces major fashion exhibition 'Dirty Looks' and a new Curve commission by Lucy Raven | Barbican". www.barbican.org.uk. Retrieved 28 March 2025.
  4. ^ "Elena Velez Fall 2023 Ready-to-Wear Collection". Vogue. 14 February 2023. Retrieved 22 July 2023.
  5. ^ Hauer, Sarah. "This Milwaukee native has designed clothes for Ariana Grande, Halsey and Solange even before finishing school". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  6. ^ a b "The Puerto Rican Designer Finding Inspiration in War-Torn Society". PAPER. 24 July 2018. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  7. ^ Emma (9 November 2024). "Fashism". The Turtle Dove. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
  8. ^ a b "_and carry on". elenavelez. Archived from the original on 21 September 2020. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  9. ^ "Aggressively Delicate". Office Magazine. 29 January 2020. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  10. ^ Hairston, Tahirah (10 September 2019). "Meet The Designer Challenging The Idea of Femininity With Her Utilitarian Designs". Teen Vogue. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  11. ^ "Elena Velez - Teenage Fashion Designer". YouTube. 27 March 2010. Archived from the original on 15 July 2017.
  12. ^ Daren (7 August 2018). "2018 ELENA VELEZ". Parsons School of Design. Archived from the original on 11 May 2021.
  13. ^ a b "VFiles Spring 2019 Ready-to-Wear Fashion Show". Vogue. 6 September 2018. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  14. ^ Wightman-Stone, Danielle (11 September 2018). "First Challenge the Fabric Award to launch at LFW". fashionunited.uk. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  15. ^ Hairston, Tahirah (22 August 2019). "Meet Teen Vogue's Generation Next — 6 Designers That Represent the Future of Fashion". Teen Vogue. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  16. ^ "How Elena Velez Is Turning Buzz Into a Business". The Business of Fashion. 22 December 2021. Retrieved 5 January 2022.
  17. ^ "VFiles Names Participating Designers and Launches Own Line". The Business of Fashion. 9 August 2018. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  18. ^ Mercer, Emily (6 September 2018). "VFiles RTW Spring 2019". WWD. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  19. ^ "User Login | WGSN | Creating Tomorrow". WGSN | Creating Tomorrow | Trend Forecasting & Analytics. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  20. ^ "Снятся ли андроидам электроовцы? – новая бьюти-съемка Vogue UA". Vogue UA. November 2019. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  21. ^ "VFiles kicks off NYFW with Lil' Kim, a kiss cam, and its debut RTW line". Dazed. 6 September 2018. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  22. ^ "Premiere Night Accelerator Studio 2020". gener8tor. Archived from the original on 5 February 2021. Retrieved 5 February 2021.
  23. ^ "Elena Velez's Witchy Creation for Taylor Swift's "Fortnight" Is Tortured Poetry at Its Core". Harper's BAZAAR. 23 April 2024. Retrieved 25 June 2024.
  24. ^ "Solange Knowles covers Numéro Berlin Spring/Summer 2019 by Marcus Cooper". fashionotography. 19 July 2019. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  25. ^ "V141: The Reign of Ethel Cain". V Magazine. March 2023. Retrieved 7 March 2023.
  26. ^ "Anna Delvey's Accessories Turned Heads as She Walked Runway at New York Fashion Week. Here's Why". People.com. Retrieved 12 February 2025.
  27. ^ "The New York Fashion Week digicam diaries: It's 2006 again, baby". Los Angeles Times. 13 September 2024. Retrieved 30 September 2024.
  28. ^ "Jenna Ortega's Deconstructed Corset Dress Is Chicly Falling Apart". W Magazine. 5 August 2025. Retrieved 6 August 2025.
  29. ^ "Julia Fox and Her Baby Wore Custom Elena Velez Looks to NYFW". PAPER. 11 September 2022. Retrieved 15 September 2022.
  30. ^ "Elena Velez Explores "Romanticized Abstractions of Middle America" for FW23". V Magazine. 16 February 2023. Retrieved 7 March 2023.
  31. ^ "In conversation with Arca". GLAMCULT.COM. Retrieved 7 April 2020.
  32. ^ Hahn, Rachel (7 August 2019). "Caroline Polachek Is Bringing Back Pirate Style for Her Latest Video". Vogue. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  33. ^ Lockwood, Lisa (15 September 2022). "2022 CFDA Fashion Awards Reveals Nominees and Honorees". WWD. Retrieved 15 September 2022.
  34. ^ "Khaite's Catherine Holstein, Luar's Raul Lopez, and More Win Top Awards at CFDA Awards—See All the Winners Here". Vogue. 8 November 2022. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
  35. ^ "CFDA". cfda.com. 3 April 2023. Retrieved 6 April 2023.
  36. ^ WHEELER, ANDRÉ-NAQUIAN (2 May 2023). "Meet the Four Independent Designers Balenciaga Invited to the Met Gala". Vogue. Retrieved 30 May 2023.
  37. ^ "Elena Velez – FAIR". www.fairforall.org. Retrieved 1 July 2024.
  38. ^ https://www.washingtonpost.com/style/fashion/2024/02/12/fashions-problematic-fave-is-elena-velez/
  39. ^ a b "Elena Velez Fall 2024 Ready-to-Wear Collection". Vogue. 12 February 2024. Retrieved 24 February 2024.
  40. ^ Ahmari, Sohrab (14 February 2024). "The Weird Racial Right Plays Dress-Up". Compact’s Substack. Retrieved 17 June 2025.
  41. ^ Fike, Ashley (14 April 2025). "Controversial Designer Elena Velez Joined OnlyFans to Escape Outrage". VICE. Retrieved 10 July 2025.
  42. ^ "Creative Team". National Ballet of Canada. Retrieved 10 July 2025.
  43. ^ "Revitalize Brooklyn". Social Justice Fund. Retrieved 12 February 2025.
  44. ^ "Categories". Latin America Fashion Awards. Retrieved 16 August 2023.
  45. ^ Feitelberg, Rosemary (19 September 2023). "Elena Velez and Carly Mark: Emerging Fashion Disruptors". WWD. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
  46. ^ "Elena Velez Is Bringing the Rust Belt to the Front Row". ELLE. 28 March 2023. Retrieved 3 May 2023.
  47. ^ "The Fashion Trust US Announces First Finalists for Awards". The Business of Fashion. 9 February 2023. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  48. ^ "Puppets and Puppets, Elena Velez Win Fashion Trust US Awards". The Business of Fashion. 22 March 2023. Retrieved 24 March 2023.
  49. ^ Solá-Santiago, Frances. "Meet The CFDA Awards' American Emerging Designer Of The Year". www.refinery29.com. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
  50. ^ "10 Distinctive Designers Make Up This Year's CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund Finalists". Vogue. 26 April 2022. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
  51. ^ Lockwood, Lisa (15 June 2022). "IMG, Empire State Development Reveal 10 Recipients of $500,000 NYFW Small Business Grant". WWD. Retrieved 26 June 2022.
  52. ^ "Meet Teen Vogue's Generation Next — 6 Designers That Represent the Future of Fashion". Teen Vogue. 22 August 2019. Retrieved 2 May 2022.
  53. ^ "The VFILES Show designer Elena Velez is making metal corsets and garments from military parachutes". @vfiles. 12 September 2018. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
  54. ^ "The CTF Award". thepinkprince. 9 September 2018. Retrieved 8 March 2020.
  55. ^ "The New Village: Ten Years of New York Fashion". Pratt Institute. Retrieved 24 January 2024.
  56. ^ "Objects of Permanence | Abrons Arts Center". Objects of Permanence | Abrons Arts Center. Retrieved 6 September 2023.
  57. ^ "At The Museum at FIT, a New Exhibition Proposes a Nuanced Way to Look at Latin American Fashion". Vogue. 31 May 2023. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
  58. ^ Borrelli-Persson, Laird (10 February 2025). "Elena Velez Fall 2025 Ready-to-Wear Collection". Vogue. Retrieved 12 February 2025.
  59. ^ Borrelli-Persson, Laird (10 September 2024). "Elena Velez Spring 2025 Ready-to-Wear Collection". Vogue. Retrieved 30 September 2024.
  60. ^ "Elena Velez Spring 2024 Ready-to-Wear Collection". Vogue. 13 September 2023. Retrieved 20 September 2023.
  61. ^ "Elena Velez Fall 2023 Ready-to-Wear Collection". Vogue. 14 February 2023. Retrieved 16 February 2023.
  62. ^ "Elena Velez Spring 2023 Ready-to-Wear Collection". Vogue. 10 September 2022. Retrieved 15 September 2022.
  63. ^ "Elena Velez Fall 2022 Ready-to-Wear Collection". Vogue. 12 February 2022. Retrieved 25 February 2022.
  64. ^ Dazed (7 September 2021). "The rising New York designers who should be on your radar". Dazed. Retrieved 10 September 2021.
  65. ^ "homecoming". elenavelez. Archived from the original on 14 December 2019. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
  66. ^ "vessel". elenavelez. Archived from the original on 12 August 2020. Retrieved 7 March 2020.
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