Willie Chavarria, winner of this year’s Cooper Hewitt National Design Award for Fashion Design, is still processing the honor.

The Cooper-Hewitt-Smithsonian Design Museum publicly announced its winners last week, and he sounded a little jaded despite being told a while ago. Twenty-three years after moving to New York, Chavarria pays homage to one of the coveted titles in the interdisciplinary, competitive world of design rather than pure fashion design. increase.

Chavarria said she works with the same company as other winners, including Design Visionary’s Nader Tehrani. Wedew by David Hertz of Architecture/Interior Design Rural Studio, Climate Action. Chavarria said: It’s not just a comparison with other fashions. It’s a comparison to other people trying to be the best at their game. All of these people do a great job and of course I know what it takes to do a great job. We are very honored to be in the same company. ”

With her work, Chavarria aims to influence beyond the fashion industry and on many other levels beyond the beauty of apparel and how it is made. Coming from a background, we really aim to nurture people for whom this path wasn’t really carved out for them. Whenever the younger generation can see someone like me succeed, it just builds people up.”

Originally from California, he switched coasts in 1999 to work for Ralph Lauren. Chavarria didn’t launch his own label until his 2015. Since then, he has stood out for statements related to racial, economic, and sexual identities. He also serves as Calvin Klein’s Senior Vice President of Design.

At the upcoming runway show scheduled for Thursday, Chavarria said last week that she was sitting on a stack of shoes and sorting them to see if there were enough sizes to fit the runway model. Said. Known for its inclusive approach to fashion, Chavarria recognizes the trend toward inclusivity. He said he was just happy to stay true to his job without compromise, gain followers, and stay in business. He said.

HI’s fellow NDA winners include emerging designer Emily Adams Bourde. Giorgia Lupi for Communication Design; Felecia Davis for Digital Design; Kounquey Design Initiative for Landscape Architecture; CW&T for Product Design; “I am aware of the seriousness of this award and that is why it is very personal.Through my conversations with Cooper Hewitt, they have shown me not only my talents and skills as a designer, but also what I design. I understand why and I am aware of the impact my work has on people.”

Chavarria, who describes his style as an “elegant interpretation of cultural influences,” says many of those influences come from the street, with several of his recent collections drawing on his own culture, upbringing, family and friends. He said he draws inspiration from wheels. “I’ve always been into subcultures, even ones I wasn’t fully connected to,” he said.

Admitting that he still questions himself every day, Chavarria said it was an advantage to have people who nurtured what he thought and felt about himself and his art during his childhood. He “felt different from a young age.” He had people around him who recognized and respected him. His parents, especially his mother, recognized and respected that. ”

Raised in a family of farm workers in San Joaquin County, California, Chavarria said his relatives did much of the crop harvesting, and his grandfather opened a small-town grocery store in his later years. learned from my parents and family that work is the path to success, and although my idea of ​​success has become very different from my family’s, I am grateful for their hard work. I was absolutely disciplined just by watching.”

Some people tend to dismiss designs as gifts, but this comes at a considerable cost.

“Discipline is key. I look around and see people who may be very successful and not very talented, but have an amazing level of self-discipline and drive. Part of my driving force. I came from a family that loved me dearly, but I wanted to show them that I could really be something. The discipline I learned probably came from the church and from a disciplined Catholic education,” he said. “As I grew up, my relationship with the church definitely evolved. I go to Mass several times a year. think.”

Having recently visited the Metropolitan Museum of Art, where three of his designs are on display, he was amazed and moved to hear people discussing his work. But for now, he’s focused on the upcoming New York Fashion Week show rather than celebrating Cooper Hewitt’s honor. I celebrate by closing my eyes and thinking about it and sleeping really well,” he said.