Too Much Fashion: An ode to Black creative resilience

Opening reception: Friday, August 1, 6-9pm

Curated by Ilene Sova and Byron Armstrong, Too Much Fashion – An Ode to Black Creative Resilience is a group exhibition featuring the dynamic work of Ojo Agi, Benny Bing, Veronica Dorsett, Kachelle Knowles, Kriss Munsya, Ehiko Odeh, Adetona Omokanye, Janice Reid and Gordon Shadrach. 

Celebrating Black cultural influence and the enduring intersections between fashion and art across the Black diaspora, this exhibition brings together artists whose practices each embrace the visual language of fashion as a site of cultural memory, visibility, and reclamation. Together, their work creates a textured narrative that recognizes fashion not only as clothing or ornamentation, but as a profound mode of storytelling, cultural assertion, and survival.

Taking its title from the iconic phrase coined by the late fashion editor and cultural titan André Leon Talley, Too Much Fashion is an homage to the vibrancy and legacy of Black style as both an aesthetic and an act of resistance. From the elegance of the Black Dandy and the flamboyance of African Sapeurs, to the rebellious swagger of hip-hop streetwear and Jamaican Rude Boy flair, Black communities around the world have continually shaped and redefined global fashion. From historical trailblazers like Bijette Spencer and Denise McLeod, to contemporary icons like Stacey McKenzie and Winnie Harlow, Too Much Fashion honours the generations of Black creatives who have claimed space in both the art and fashion worlds, often against immense odds.

At a moment when Black bodies and identities remain sites of political tension and cultural appropriation, Too Much Fashion insists on celebration, visibility, and self-definition. The exhibition resists erasure, offering a vibrant visual chorus of defiance, beauty, and possibility.