http://www.nytimes.com/2016/09/13/fashion/new-york-fashion-week-remembers-september-11.html 2016-09-13 01:10:41 A Day When Fashion and Tragedy Continue to Intersect It has taken 15 years, but the fashion industry has begun to formally mark the anniversary of 9/11 when it falls during New York Fashion Week. === Sunday morning, officially the fourth day of At the It was part of a formal recognition of how, every year, Sept. 11 falls somewhere on the New York Fashion Week calendar and how, for 15 years, designers and attendees have struggled with how to mark that day in an appropriate way. This year, for the first time, the “We lived it, saw it, smelled it and refused to be defeated,” Diane von Furstenberg wrote in an email, referring to New Yorkers who were in the city on that day. Ms. von Furstenberg, the chairwoman of the C.F.D.A. board, also noted the resilience: “We are not victims. We built a better building, an entire neighborhood. We are proud but we don’t forget. Living fully is the only way to honor those who perished on that terrible day 15 years ago.” In fact, in 2001, the World Trade Center was hit by the terrorist attacks just as that day’s fashion shows were about to start in Bryant Park. At the time, the tragedy was met with confusion and uncertainty. “I remember thinking, ‘What’s happening with fashion week? Am I going to sneak in?’” said Humberto Leon, who had not yet founded Opening Ceremony and was still a fashion hopeful. “You just didn’t know what was happening. I remember saying to somebody, ‘No, nobody’s going to have their show.’” Within hours, fashion week had been suspended, many shows canceled. Vogue and Carolina Herrera joined forces to offer some of the younger, fledgling brands the opportunity to show later, at Ms. Herrera’s showroom. This year, throughout the day, front row chatter kept to the usual fashion week banter, about weather and logistics, but designers made acknowledgments in their show notes and programs, even if not aloud. “We have to,” said Sander Lak, the designer of “I think you should continue,” he said. “We should celebrate life, and beauty hopefully — the joys of making things.” Joseph Altuzarra, who had just come to the United States from Paris to attend Swarthmore College in the fall of 2001, said he felt conflicted at “In a way, I think it’s a great message of rebuilding and going forward,” he said. “It’s also obviously a very sad day. It was really important for me in the program to address it. I feel dual emotions. It’s sort of how I felt when I was watching the ceremony this morning. It’s obviously incredibly sad, and there’s a sort of positivity also that you hear about rebuilding.” That message was echoed by Mr. Leon and Carol Lim of Opening Ceremony, who closed the day with an 8 p.m. show that was also “We were actually excited,” Mr. Leon said of the overlap. “It made sense. We’re doing a very celebratory act to commemorate it.”