Over the weekend, Kamala Harris spoke at the Congressional Black Foundation’s Phoenix Awards dinner, where she stunned in a black sequined gown created by designer LaQuan Smith.
Smith posted two photos on his Instagram to celebrate the moment — one of Harris and President Joe Biden on stage and a solo shot of Harris as the other. He described the gown as “structured and sculpted to elongate her silhouette, but still soft enough to maintain a sense of grace” in an email shared with The Washignton Post.
Smith’s fans were elated to see his work on a Black woman of Harris’ caliber.
“Omg she looks stunning,” one Instagram user commented.
“You really did a great job here 👌🏾,” another person agreed.
“Yeeeessssss…..! 🖤 Bravo,” runway coach Miss J. Alexander wrote.
The special moment comes on the heels of Smith’s New York Fashion Week show, which channeled “animalistic glamour with a touch of sensuality.”
“I was really inspired by a lot of the palettes of wildlife, so I was thinking the New York woman and she’s in the concrete jungle in New York in the spring season wearing LaQuan,” he told WWD. “How does she then live her life on the global scale?”
This isn’t Harris’ first time rocking a LaQuan Smith piece. In August 2023, she paired a gold sequin button-down (designed by Smith) with white trousers at the Maryland stop of Beyoncé’s Renaissance Tour.
“My brand is all about dressing powerful and strong women,” Smith told Vogue at the time.“Having Vice President Kamala Harris attend Beyoncé’s tour and wear a custom show look by me is an incredible moment. Two powerhouses uniting!”
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According to Smith’s website, his passion for design was planted by his grandmother, who taught him sewing and pattern making. Early on, Smith’s work caught the attention of A-listers like Beyoncé, Rihanna, Lady Gaga and Kim Kardashian.
In addition, he provides head-turning looks for editorial spreads, brand/commercial advertisements and red-carpet appearances for Tyla, Hailey Beiber, Ryan Destiny, Heidi Klum, Blake Lively, Victoria Monét and more.
