Meet a new group of emerging designers who are joining New York Fashion Week to debut their fall 2026 collections.

Andrew Curwen

Andrew Curwen is a homegrown talent through-and-through. Born in Lake Placid, N.Y., Curwen graduated from Parsons before cutting his teeth in the studios of New York City’s avant-garde, starting at Area, then cycling through Wiederhoeft, Elena Velez and Jane Wade. To unveil his solo act last July, Curwen held an off-calendar show in Brooklyn’s Bushwick neighborhood, which garnered enough buzz to land him a spot on the official CFDA calendar this season.

“New York Fashion Week needs more space for fashion not focused on mass appeal,” declared Curwen, determined to fill the void. As he puts it, his brand is “forged in confrontation, driven by an unflinching examination of the body and power.” But there is a theatrical beauty to Curwen’s work that remains appealing despite his protestations, drawing parallels with his idols Lee Alexander McQueen and John Galliano. 

Curwen’s fall collection will see creatures of the night stalk his runway: from the warden to the widow, each one a distinctive identity. Exploring themes of decay and Gothic romance, deconstructed suiting will be offset by moth-eaten tulle and taffeta, which Curwen has sculpted into bustle-back skirts snatched by kidskin corsets. Although he’s quick to criticize NYFW, Curwen still feels honored to have a presence there. “My favorite part is the electric atmosphere backstage with my team, seeing months of hard work finally come to life,” he said.

YH Studios

With mentors like Schiaparelli’s Daniel Roseberry and Thom Browne, it’s no wonder Yoav Hadari is a dab hand when it comes to sharp tailoring. After winning the Alexander McQueen Sarabande Foundation scholarship while completing his BA at Central Saint Martins, the Israeli native struck out on his own in 2022, first under the label Hadari. “I made a few collections and even managed to secure wholesale buyers before I decided to relocate the business from London to New York for logistics and personal reasons,” he said. 

While Hadari is rebranding as YH Studios, his creative voice remains unchanged, clearly influenced by Browne in his fusion of the sartorial with the slightly psychotic. Titled “Neuro-Corpus,” YH Studios’ fall collection has an X-ray couture quality, which Hadari achieved by treating deadstock organza like wool, weaving it into faux-tweed or plying it in up to 30 bias-cut layers — an early 20th-century technique he said reminds him of brain dissection. “Besides cultural references and historic fashion, I am highly inspired by neuro-science, both visually and conceptually,” explained the designer, who was diagnosed as neurodivergent.

Busy finishing two commissions for Andrew Bolton that will be displayed as part of the Costume Institute’s May exhibition, Hadari said he wanted a low-maintenance NYFW debut, opting for a look book photo shoot at his atelier inside the New York Embroidery Studio provided to him by owner Michelle Feinberg. There, Hadari will be taking appointments with editors and buyers, but he plans to have a physical presentation for spring 2027. “Maybe, hopefully, we’ll be on the schedule,” he said. “It might be too soon, but I dare to dream.”

Hilà

It only takes one celebrity endorsement to capture the industry’s attention and Hila Arshadnia already has a few. With her experience designing tour costumes for the likes of Tinashe and Cher, it’s only natural that other musicians would follow suit. Lately, Halsey and the R&B girl group Flo are among those who have been spotted in looks from her label Hilá, which specializes in special occasion pieces, often with an unconventional or streetwear twist.

“I’ve spent years dressing women for red carpets, performances, and culturally significant moments and that shaped the way I think about clothing, not just as garments, but as tools for character-building,” Arshadnia said. 

In lieu of a traditional runway, the designer is inviting guests to experience her fall collection, “Jasmine of the Night,” through an immersive display inspired by her Iranian heritage. They’ll be treated to an authentic Persian breakfast, while taking in festive gowns and sets embroidered with jasmine vines rendered in leather, a Hilá signature. Elsewhere, wispier chiffons in a palette of sand and gem tones will add to the feeling of Scheherazade. According to Arshadnia, “‘Jasmine of the Night’ is a celebration of femininity that blooms in the dark.…Fashion is meant to offer a fantasy, and there is nothing more beautiful than that.”

Aiste Hong

A Lithuanian native, Aiste Hong moved to the U.K. before landing in New York six years ago to pursue a career in human resources. “Though, a love of fashion — shaped early by my mother, a seamstress— was always present,” she said. After becoming a mother herself, Hong decided to pivot and follow that passion wholeheartedly, establishing her line in 2024. According to Hong, her designs balance femininity with edge, while always keeping an eye toward wearability. “The clothes are meant to feel easy, yet distinctive.”

A few key items Hong is excited to present for fall include a mint green feathered bandeau top, tailoring in gray Swiss-dotted wool, and a slit-hem legging set with a floor-length chiffon overskirt. Hong’s favorite, however, is a sweetheart minidress made entirely out of zipper teeth, which she sculpted to the contours of the body.

To present the collection, Hong will set up an installation inside a raw space in the Flatiron District for two days. “I’m looking forward to taking the guests through it, so they can see all the intricate details up close,” she said. “Having that direct connection and getting feedback is the part I love the most about New York Fashion Week.” Afterward, she’ll be making her way to Paris for market and continue building out her e-commerce. “We’re very excited.”

Aisling Camps

A former engineer, Aisling Camps returned to school in 2015 to pursue a degree in knitwear design at FIT, later repatriating to Trindidad, where her namesake brand was born. She credits her “texture-heavy” aesthetic to this time, much of it spent in nature. 

Initially, Camps loomed each piece herself, a process she described as “incredibly personal.” Fast forward a few years, and a sabbatical in Italy taught her how to integrate machine manufacturing, allowing her to scale production. “It was the best thing I could have done to ensure the quality of our garments,” said Camps, adding that “all of these different chapters shaped where the brand is today and what we stand for: a celebration of craft.”

In Camps’ hands, a cable or crewneck is never simply just that — there’s a playfulness to her draping and cutouts, subverted by the juxtaposition of gossamer-like fine gauge underpinnings with cozier, enveloping sweaters. And while she can’t pin down just one source of inspiration, affixed to her mood board this season are images of a linen couch trimmed with velvet and Trinidadian folklore characters. Camps has also been dabbling in wovens and softly tailored garments, which she’ll be presenting for the first time. 

While Aisling Camps relies mostly on wholesale to retailers like Bergdorf Goodman and Nordstrom, she is aware of the need to expand her direct sales channels, given the turbulent retail climate. Asked who her core customers are, she responded: “I like to think of them as art collectors.” 

Dodiee

After 20 years helping to grow Mackage into a global outerwear brand, Elisa Dahan left her position as co-creative director to start over again with Dodiee in 2022. Ironically, given Dahan’s background, Dodiee utilizes compression technology found in innerwear to form garments that offer “natural shaping and support while remaining comfortable and fluid,” she said.

Dahan’s favorite decade to reference is the 1970s, specifically vintage images of her mother, who passed away from breast cancer at an early age. And while knitted body suits and body-con dresses still comprise the majority of her offering, Dahan has been returning to the skills she honed at Mackage as Dodiee expands into jackets and coats. For fall, she’s expanded even further with leather, introducing pieces in suede as well as a new knitting technique that weaves eyelash yarns into fringe. A leitmotif of the collection is an engineered tulip pattern based on her mother’s doodles.

Previously, Dodiee has hosted cocktail parties during NYFW, but Dahan is making a bigger splash this time around, throwing a cabaret at The Box Monday night with a special performance by ‘70s supermodel Pat Cleveland. It was a star-studded affair attended by the likes of Martha Hunt and Candace Bushnell. Dahan said “giving the clothes life in this way — through movement, music and emotion — felt truly magical. What stayed with me most was realizing how powerful it is to be surrounded by people who truly see you — your heart, your soul, your intention. It was an emotional night, in the most beautiful way.”