New exhibit celebrates a global fashion trailblazer from South Jamaica

Queens-born fashion designer Jay Jaxon began his career in Paris at the height of the Civil Rights Movement. Photographer Unknown, Editorial Image, 1969 / 1970, Keystone Press Agency, Ltd., Jay Jaxon’s Portfolio, Bequest of Lloyd Hardy, Rachel Fenderson Collection, 2017.

By Rachel Vick

An exhibit honoring an international fashion trailblazer from South Jamaica will open this weekend at the Queens Historical Society in Flushing.

Jay Jason Jaxon, an African American designer, rose to heights of the fashion world before he was 30, becoming one the first Americans to head of a Parisian fashion house after ascending to the top of Jean-Louis Scherrer in 1970. 

The “Jay Jaxon: 40 years of Fashion Design Brilliance” marks the 50th anniversary of his landmark achievement, and was curated by St. Albans native Rachel Fenderson. The exhibit is an extension of her master’s thesis on Jaxon, and was previously on display at the Queens Public Library.

“I feel like it would have been so critical for me to see someone like Jaxon, who was so prevalent and who should be recognized — to see someone who looked like me,” Fenderson said. “When you see yourself reflected in any narrative you know it's possible. You don’t feel like you're by yourself.”

Fenderson was inspired to write her paper after a preliminary search on Jaxon, a Jamaica High School grad, left her with minimal information. During her research, she found many parallels in their lives and was struck by details of his move to the neighborhood, only a few blocks from her home. 

“We would have walked the same streets, taken the same buses, gone to the same church,” Fenderson said. “The fact that someone like him is from Queens, it made it understood that your dreams are valid, and that you can reach and accomplish anything.”

Jaxon had previously worked for iconic brands like Dior and apprenticed under Yves Saint Laurent, and went on to design costumes for television and film before his death in 2006.

The exhibit will be on display until the end of the year.