‘Chicago Style’ Showcases Black Fashion Through the Decades

Furs, tailored suits and colorful threads were just some of the fashion trends in the 1930s.

Now, two friends have combined their love of fashion by incorporating film and the runway to take people on a journey back to see Black fashion on Chicago’s South Side decades ago.

The “Chicago Style” film and fashion show is bringing to life archival film while exploring Chicago’s Black fashion scene from the 1930s through the ‘80s.

The show is the brainchild of AnnMarie Brown and Edvetté Jones, who met at a church in Rogers Park.

“The biggest thing I learned was the culture behind fashion,” Brown said. “Back then, most of the clothes were tailored. Maybe they couldn’t go to Marshall Field’s, but what they would do is see the image of this dress they wanted and go back to their community and have it made for them.”

The show is a collaboration with Illinois Humanities and the South Side Home Movie Project. The fashion designers spent time going through archival video of everyday Black fashion, exploring the question: How does fashion thread through generations?

“The whole aspect of this was community,” Jones said. “That’s one thing especially now, that we find kind of fleeting, and looking back in those days with the South Side Home Movie Project, it brings you back to those times when community worked together. We saw the mom and pop’s grocery store, and now today, things are so saturated, our communities are gentrified, and the young kids are out of touch with a lot of things, so we wanted to reach back and bring back all those feel-good memories.”

As for the clothing, Brown and Jones looked through thrift shops to find some unique pieces. Brown is also showing three designed and tailored pieces of her own.

The duo wanted to include everyday people, so you’ll find friends, cousins and locals walking the runway.

“Style is how you walk in life,” Brown said. “You take those experiences, your cultures and the people that you love, and that’s what influences your style.”

The “Chicago Style” film and fashion show runs from 3-6 p.m. Saturday at the Green Line Performing Arts Center.