5000 Merges Bay-Area Punk With New York Elegance — in a Cemetery

Just when New York Fashion Week guests thought all neighborhoods, boroughs and interesting venues had been exhausted, designers are now venturing into new (and dark) territory: burial grounds.

5000’s Spring 2025 presentation took place at Marble Cemetery in the East Village, following in the footsteps of Collina Strada, which showed there just a few days prior. On paper (or rather email?), it was easy to presume attendees would be in for a somber affair. In reality, the presentation was quite joyful, with gorgeous weather, an open bar, the models conversing with guests and upbeat music adding to the delightful ambiance. (That’s not to say I won’t be sprinkling myself with holy water tonight — I’m not trying to get haunted by any ghosts here.)

But seriously, why a cemetery? “The idea wasn’t for it to feel [only] like a cemetery, but more like a garden at the same time. I felt like it was having that fun parallel of it all — it’s punk, but it’s also chic and elegant,” designer Taylor Thompson told Fashionista.

That juxtaposition is well-reflected in the collection: This season, the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund finalist explores duality, evolving his penchant for suiting and fine tailoring in unexpected ways. There are double-pleated skirts, fitted blazers featuring one sleeve crafted in a different color or fabric, texture-blocked trousers and structured tops balanced with unique draping.

These design contrasts speak to his gritty inspiration: the Mabuhay Gardens. “It’s an old punk bar in San Francisco,” the Oakland, Calif.-based designer explained. “It was wanting to represent that, yes, this is [New York] Fashion Week, but there also is the Bay Area. At this moment, I wanted it to feel like you were in the Bay Area.”

The combination laid-back California energy and very East-Coast location resulted in a calm and easeful environment for clothes that were so cool we couldn’t stop staring at them.

“I just want everyone to have a good time,” Thompson said. “I don’t want there to be a fuss. I don’t want there to be this fanciness of it all. I want you to feel the euphoria of being in a bar for the first time or finding a new place. That’s what I want, this landscape of just being yourself and being free and having this connection to the clothes, but also just having fun.”

See all the looks from 5000 Spring 2025 below.