The New York designer reflects on personal loss, family legacy, and historical silhouettes that have shaped her ethereal creations.

PHOTOGRAPHY&nbsp;Jacq Harriet
STYLED BY&nbsp;Trinidad Alamos
Zoe Gustavia Anna Whalen believes it’s important to say her full name. “In the spirit of everything I do being about the empowerment of women, I expect people to remember my name,” says the Massachusetts native from her airy studio in Chinatown, a space previously occupied by designer Maryam Nassir Zadeh for 17 years. “That’s the name I have, so why not use it?”
Whalen has embraced her individuality since launching her namesake label in 2022. Before setting out on her own, she earned her degree from FIT, studied abroad at Central Saint Martins, completed her MFA at Parsons, and interned at Eckhaus Latta. Fashion wasn’t always the obvious path, however, even though she learned to sew as a child and dressed each day from an overflowing costume box, where a Dorothy outfit was the perennial favorite.
The women in Whalen’s family were the first to show her that making clothes could be a serious pursuit. Her mother taught her how to sew her first dress; her great-great-grandmother spent years creating handmade garments for loved ones. But it was the life-changing loss of her father that ultimately set her course toward New York City, the place she now calls home and credits with instilling in her both “grit and softness.”

“My dad died when I was 17, and it pushed me to see how life can shift so crazily,” says Whalen. “With that knowledge and energy, I applied all of my efforts into learning as much as I could about the fashion industry.” Fourteen years later, that commitment has paid off. In June, Whalen became a CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund finalist, recognized for her ethereal creations crafted from deadstock and preexisting materials. She describes her work as “a practice that uses clothing as a medium of art” while “proposing a new future for garments.”
History is equally central to Whalen’s design process. She frequently references historical forms of body modification—from hip pads and panniers to bustles—reimagining them through a contemporary lens. “It’s just so interesting to think about standards of beauty and how people used to want to look,” she says. Just as thoughtfully, she considers how her own work shapes the way people experience clothing today. “I get to make things for people I’ve never met to wear and have really magical experiences in,” she says. “That is such a gift.”

MODEL: Lola Bebe THE INDUSTRY MODEL MANAGEMENT
HAIR:&nbsp;Ginger Leigh Ryan using ROZ HAIR
MAKEUP:&nbsp;Sophie Hartnett using MAC COSMETICS
MANICURE:&nbsp;Mamie Onishi SEE MANAGEMENT using CHANEL BEAUTY
PRODUCED BY:&nbsp;Emily Adar
PHOTO ASSISTANTS: Juan Cuartas Rueda and Evan Odiorn

Jacket, top, skirt, and hip pads ZOE GUSTAVIA ANNA WHALEN Shoes MALONE SOULIERS

Zoe Gustavia Anna Whalen Is Creating a New Future for Fashion

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Zoe Gustavia Anna Whalen Is Creating a New Future for Fashion

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