Chrissy Cavotta carries a well of resiliency, maybe one of the most overlooked qualities of those who’ve found themselves in fashion.
In early April, Cavotta cancelled Cleveland Fashion Week indefinitely, the event she announced earlier this year as the city’s largest fashion show in nearly a decade. While auditioning models in Florida, Cavotta had a dispute with the event’s main financial backer and reluctantly sent out a mass email to hundreds of designers, funders and models when she returned to Cleveland. “I am devastated,” she told Scene at the time.
Over the weekend, Cavotta hosted her annual summer swimwear showcase, at INTRO’s rooftop in Ohio City, a poolside walk that doubled as a replacement for the one Cavotta had planned to host at Edgewater Beach. Fifty-three models showed off a range of vibrant one-pieces, trunks and bikinis from seven designers that would easily find a home in 1970s Miami.
It’s “an absolute dream come true for me,” Cavotta told Scene. “It was truly an honor to give some of Cleveland’s local models, designers, dancers, hairdressers, makeup artists, show producers, photographers and videographers the platform that they deserve to showcase their talents.”
Credit: Mark OpreaCavotta’s fashion show interns, Juliana Klopp and Isabelle McBride Credit: Mark OpreaCredit: Mark OpreaLiz Hanna and Nicole Brown wearing Delphine Credit: Mark OpreaRock City Dance and Sij Crew Dancers Credit: Mark OpreaCredit: Mark OpreaRock City Dance & Sij Crew Dancers Credit: Mark OpreaLiz Hanna wearing Delphine Credit: Mark OpreaDasha Moné wearing Delphine Credit: Mark OpreaCredit: Mark OpreaJasmine Garret wearing Delphine Credit: Mark OpreaKara Laboda wearing Dephine Credit: Mark OpreaKiara Bishop wearing Delphine Credit: Mark OpreaCartier Young wearing Delphine Credit: Mark OpreaChristopher Woods wearing Delphine Credit: Mark OpreaCredit: Mark OpreaDevin Dlugolinski wearing Dephine Credit: Mark OpreaDeja Mitchell wearing Dephine Credit: Mark OpreaCredit: Mark OpreaT’maya Howard wearing Delphine Credit: Mark OpreaJustice Maxwell wearing Delphine Credit: Mark OpreaCarlos Nuñez wearing Delphine Credit: Mark OpreaCredit: Mark OpreaShomari Bryant wearing Delphine Credit: Mark OpreaSarina Buonavolonta wearing BRIJANAY Credit: Mark OpreaPaulina Rivera wearing Delphine Credit: Mark OpreaChina Robertson wearing AD6 Credit: Mark OpreaLarisa Irodia wearing BRIJANAY Credit: Mark OpreaMorgan Williams wearing AD6 Credit: Mark OpreaCredit: Mark OpreaMaryam Hargrove wearing BRIJANAY Credit: Mark OpreaNaquai Davidson wearing BRIJANAY Credit: Mark OpreaJasmine Garret wearing BRIJANAY Credit: Mark OpreaIsis Smith wearing BRIJANAY Credit: Mark OpreaAshley Beck wearing Ché Samoné Designs Credit: Mark OpreaA’Nia Churn wearing Kartandra the Brand Credit: Mark OpreaShomari Bryant wearing Art of Jacinth Credit: Mark OpreaChina Robertson wearing Art of Jacinth Credit: Mark OpreaJustice Maxwell wearing Art of Jacinth Credit: Mark OpreaMaryam Hargrove wearing Art of Jacinth Credit: Mark OpreaElizabeth Gates wearing Ché Samoné Designs Credit: Mark OpreaCredit: Mark OpreaKiara Bishop wearing Ché Samoné Designs Credit: Mark OpreaLarisa Irodia wearing Art of Jacinth Credit: Mark OpreaMaryam Hargrove wearing Ché Samoné Designs Credit: Mark OpreaEmily Bare wearing Cokovenda J. Collection Credit: Mark OpreaJasmine Garret wearing Ché Samoné Designs Credit: Mark OpreaMorgan Williams wearing Cokovenda J. Collection Credit: Mark OpreaKara Laboda wearing Cokovenda J. Collection Credit: Mark OpreaPaulina Rivera wearing Cokovenda J. Collection Credit: Mark OpreaIsis Smith wearing Cokovenda J. Collection Credit: Mark OpreaCredit: Mark Oprea
Mark Oprea is a staff writer at Scene. He's covered Cleveland for the past decade, and has contributed to TIME, NPR, Narratively, the Pacific Standard and the Cleveland Magazine. He's the winner of two Press Club awards.
