Naomi Campbell is in her museum era. The model is the subject of a forthcoming summer exhibition at Victoria and Albert Museum, opening in June, and on Thursday afternoon she stopped by the Guggenheim in New York to celebrate the recent launch of her capsule collection with Hugo Boss, exclusive to Bloomingdale’s.
The supermodel joined Harlem Fashion Row founder Brandice Daniel and Nadia Kokni, senior vice president global marketing and brand communications at Hugo Boss, onstage for a fireside chat in the museum’s theater. Afterwards, Kokni continued the conversation with Bloomingdales chief merchant Denise Magid and Peloton instructor Jess Sims, which was followed by a casual lunch. Guests included Ming Lee Simmons, Jessica Wang, Ty Hunter and Ron Jeffries.
In the museum’s green room after her talk, Campbell elaborated on her working partnership with Hugo Boss.
“You’re with people that you either click with or you don’t, and we got along really well,” said Campbell. “I’d worked with them previously as an ambassador. And so they understood me, which was great, and the things I wanted to try and do in clothes.”
The Naomi x Boss collection was designed for the “sophisticated traveler” and features fabrics that are wrinkle resistant, with an anti-bacterial finish. For Campbell, compression is also a key component of her travel uniform.
“It’s a form fitting pant, like a legging; these are compressions,” said the model, gesturing to her leggings with zip-hems, paired with a leopard-pattern raincoat, both from the collection. “Something loose, not too tight. You want to be comfortable — but I do always have the compression underneath,” she added. “It’s my foundation when I travel. When you land, you’re not swollen, you’re not bloated. You’re pretty much still how you were when you took off. Because we all do change when we go up in the air. Like it or not, we do.”
One thing that’s not changing: Campbell’s schedule, busy as always. “I’ve got a lot on my plate,” added Campbell.
The capsule also has a charitable component, benefitting organizations including Harlem Fashion Row’s Icon 360 fund. During their onstage conversation, Daniel asked Campbell if she had advice for anyone starting out in the industry. “Really it’s my three Ds — which is my logo on the back of my hoodies — which is determination, dedication and drive,” said Campbell. “That really is it. It has its ups and downs — you just have to stick to the dedication part and know not to give up.”
