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By: Ellen Cans
The Con artist socialite, Anna Delvey, bravely stole Fashion Week headlines by co-hosting an al fresco show for up-and-coming designer Shao Yang.
As reported by the NY Post, Delvey did not let the fact that she’s in house arrest stop her from grabbing the spotlight at the year’s hottest catwalk in New York. On Monday night, the ankle bracelet -accessorized Delvey hosted Yang’s breakout collection show for a few hours at the rooftop of her building in the East Village.
Delvey, the 32-year-old famed fraudster, who posed as a wealthy heiress to gain access to NY’s upper-class society, was convicted in 2019 for grand larceny and theft of services. She served nearly four years in prison, and has since been confined to her home for overstaying her visa. Her story was played out in a Netflix series named “Inventing Anna,” by Julia Garner.
“There’s obviously not much I can do for the Fashion Week — we can’t leave the house,” Delvey told The Post. She added that hosting Yang’s collection helped so she doesn’t “feel left out.” Monday night’s rain and mud didn’t deter fashionistas in stilettos from showing up to see the model’s showing off Yang’s new collection. “I hope I’m just finally channeling this attention that I’ll be getting to help somebody else,” said Delvey, who said she hopes she’s putting her fame to good use. The edgy show held in Delvey’s walk-up apartment in First Ave., with “The Sopranos” theme song blasting from loudspeakers, was in stark contrast to the cookie cutter runway shows produced by most big named designers. The show was co-produced by another NY sensation — Kelly Cutrone, fashion publicist and CEO and founder of People’s Revolution.
For her part, Shao Yang has extensive experience in bespoke tailoring, which is where clothing is tailor to an individual buyer’s specifications and their own measurements. Having moved to NY from Taiwan when she was 5, she is a Parsons graduate, per the NY Times. A fashion designer in NYC for over a decade, she previously founded The Tailory, a custom suit company. This event is now for the launch for her namesake label, Shao New York.
Overall, the publicity stunt seems to have worked. About 100 people crowded the ex-con’s rooftop, having climbed up 6 flights of steps. There were plenty of celebrities, with some big names including: Olivier Zahm, editor of Purple magazine; Nicola Formichetti, Lady Gaga’s collaborator; and pop singer Slayyyter.
“It’s so hard for new designers to get any attention, and I can just get publicity — bad publicity, any publicity, just for taking out garbage,” Delvey, whose real name is Sorokin, told the NY Times before the show, sitting in her apartment. “We’re just trying to channel it into something positive,” she said. “Not everyone would be cool with it — with us, probably, getting more attention than their work,” Delvey added.
