At NYFW, Darren Apolonio captures beauty in the bizarre
By Ferlie Andong
I attended New York Fashion Week for the first time, and came in with zero expectations.
It was a little early when I arrived so I caught parts of the rehearsal for Darren Apolonio’s Spring Summer 2026 show at the Flatiron District in Manhattan and wondered what I was about to witness. I was stunned to see a nonbinary model wearing a triple-breasted silicone prosthetic shirt and some over-the-top ensemble. While some pieces in his collection are costume-like, others are surprisingly wearable— skirts, tops, and cropped pants suitable for evening parties and as streetwear.
The Manila-born creative, known for his fearless aesthetics, leaned into his fascination with the bizarre to present a lineup that was part performance art, part wearable rebellion. At this season’s New York Fashion Week, Apolonio transformed the runway into his bold homage to the world of the “freak show.”
“I’ve always found beauty in the bizarre,” Apolonio explained to The FilAm when asked about the theme.
Inspired by 19th- and early 20th-century traveling exhibitions that showcased human oddities, he said he sought to reinterpret that history through his own lens.
“I wanted to create characters for my own freak show that resonate with my brand,” he said. “The last show I did with F/Row, I was inspired by the idea of a dystopian city overrun by criminals clad in leather and glitter, and at the end I have this beautiful black woman covered head to toe in gunmetal silver, as if she were the new Statue of Liberty. I wanted to create characters for my own freak show that resonate with my aesthetic in my brand so I came up with a human disco ball where she’s pretty much covered in glitter and naked on the runway. There’s the woman with three tits, which is a tongue-in-cheek play of how I always tend to play with sex and there’s also a character called the glampire, which is exactly how I see my main models as just glittery rock stars of the night.”
The intention, he explained, was to provoke awe and curiosity: “I always want the reaction to my work to be like: I don’t know what the fuck I’m looking at, but I can’t stop staring.” It seemed to work.
While much of the collection dripped with theatricality, Apolonio also made sure to include pieces that could be worn beyond the runway.
“There’s a huge streetwear aspect to my clothes,” he explained. “When you break them down, they’re pretty much wearable. Especially for the menswear—I haven’t bought anything outside of underwear and socks in years. I just make everything I wear.”
This blend of accessibility and avant-garde underscores his approach: fashion for the everyday that still feels like a statement.
“I’ve always commended streetwear culture for being accessible. I want my brand to give people a way to look like glitter punk rock stars.”
Behind the mask
For his finale walk, Apolonio emerged masked—a choice that raised eyebrows among viewers looking at one another in search of an explanation.
“This is my fifth fashion week show, and I’m realizing the kind of designer I want to be,” he said. “I don’t mind not putting a face to the brand name. I make everything myself, so the recognition is appreciated, but I don’t need to parade around saying, ‘Hi, it’s me, Darren!’”
The mask also provides comfort in high-pressure settings, he added.
“I’ve learned I have a tendency toward social anxiety. I’m an introvert, a loud introvert,” he admitted. “I’m happiest when I’m alone, making clothes and listening to Y2K emo music. Wearing a mask helps me feel at ease in what can feel like a manic social setting.”
Apolonio said “the illusion that fashion is a snobby, exclusive affair is being disrupted by more experimental designers like myself.”
His work is a reflection of his Piscean nature, he said. An act of escape from the beauty norms he grew up around in the Philippines.
“Philippine fashion has always been riddled with ‘traditional pretty’ pageants and nightgowns. It’s beautiful, but being exposed to that world pushed me to create something different, something subversive.”
For Apolonio, style is less about the clothes and more about the energy.
“I’m all about the vibes,” he said. “I tell my models not to worry about being pretty and chic—they already are. I’m open to weird and campy. Someone in just a T-shirt and jeans could be the most fashionable person I’ve seen, if they carry themselves with the right energy.”
That sense of vibe, drama, and character has become his signature, shaping runway shows that blur the line between fashion and theater.
From Manila to Manhattan
Born and raised in Manila, Apolonio studied Multimedia Arts at De La Salle–College of Saint Benilde before pursuing fashion at SCAD in Hong Kong and Savannah. His trajectory has taken him from underground subcultures across Asia and Europe to the runways of New York, with a memorable stop as a contestant on Season 19 of Project Runway. While he didn’t take home the top prize, he quickly became one of the season’s most memorable personalities—a label he continues to live up to with each collection.
Now based in New York, he continues to carve out space for his brand: glittery, campy, unapologetic, and—most importantly—his own.
Ferlie Andong is a freelance writer and an advertising executive for Kaisa Communications based in New Jersey.
