Third Thursday’s Fashion Show Invites Spectacle from Beyond

Submitted Community Feature:

The following article was submitted by a local community member and has been lightly edited for clarity. Photo and article from Brigham Larington.

Third Thursday’s Fashion Show Invites Spectacle from Beyond

McCook Neb. - On June 19, at ArtBank in downtown McCook, local artists and designers Asher Long, Isabelle Claus, Vania, Maria, and Fatima Rodriguez curated a fashion exhibit featuring mannequins dressed in garments designed by Creative Growth artists from Oakland, California.

Since 2012, Creative Growth’s Beyond Trend fashion show has created space for artists with disabilities to showcase their clothing designs on a professional runway. In 2019, the show attracted more than 2,000 audience members and even a cameo from David Byrne, frontman of the Talking Heads.

Here in McCook, ArtBank founder Chad Graff gave full creative control to Izzy, Asher, Vania, Maria, and Fatima to style the mannequins head to toe in hand-painted, hand-sewn, and repurposed garments that have been seen on the world stage. The exhibit also featured rare pieces from renowned designers Junya Watanabe, Walter Van Beirendonck, and Maison Martin Margiela.

Showcases like Beyond Trend shine a much-needed light on the importance of free expression — a breath of fresh air for visitors to downtown McCook’s Third Thursday event. The opening at ArtBank served refreshments for both body and soul, with cookies and a screening of Beyond / Wanna Go, a short documentary directed by Cheryl Dunn.

Guests of all ages were invited to engage and reflect. One young attendee described artist Dan Miller’s work as “Amazing… it looks like scribbles, but it’s all made out of words!” Izzy Claus wore one of Miller’s custom pieces: a black dress painted with his signature word-scribbles.

In the 30-minute documentary shown at the 5:00 p.m. opening, Creative Growth artists were asked to describe what “beyond” means to them. Their responses varied widely. Artist Dinah Shapiro said, “Different people doing different things, doing their own thing beyond how they feel,” while John Martin simply offered, “…don’t mean nothin’. Just talk about art and stuff.”

Reflecting on Thursday’s show as an audience member, I’m reminded of the subtle reverence and inspiration public gatherings like Third Thursdays can offer. As Dinah Shapiro put it in the film, “Without art, where do you put your feelings? How do you put your feelings out there?”

As an artist and exhibit attendee myself, I usually have a social encounter I didn’t expect — whether it’s reconnecting with someone I worked with years ago, or chatting with a talkative little kid. Events like this invite individuality while creating a shared space that brings people together.