Today we’d like to introduce you to Audrey Velasquez.
Hi Audrey, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
Monochrome Collective was founded by me (Audrey Velasquez) and Monico Zarate in 2025. The collective started because I was independently hosting/producing fashion shows in 2025, but wanted to bring more people into the planning and behind the scenes process, so I asked Monico to come alongside me and create something even better than what I could create on my own.
I have been doing fashion design since I was 15, and began attending Texas Woman’s University in 2022 as a Fashion Design major. When I moved from Houston to Denton, I hoped that a city known for it’s artsy vibe (and that has two universities which both offer fashion design programs) would be rich with opportunity to showcase my designs. I also figured that with Dallas and Fort Worth being so close to Denton, I would definitely start to find an “in” in the fashion industry in some capacity. Unfortunately, I felt underwhelmed when I started attending school, because I realized that there was a lack of opportunity to showcase designs as someone who didn’t have any real footing in the industry.
I didn’t know where to find opportunities and especially felt that there were none on my campus. I went to UNTs campus and participated in their fashion orgs but never truly felt connected since I wasn’t a student there. I had the opportunity to participate in Fort Worth Fashion Week my sophomore year as part of a “college showcase” that they hosted at the Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth. It felt great to finally get to show my pieces at a fashion week, but I realized that if I wasn’t specifically going to school for fashion design I wouldn’t have had the opportunity. I changed my major to Marketing shortly after and realized that now, any showcasing/networking opportunities that I had had through my design program were no longer available to me, so I decided that if I was so hungry for an opportunity, I was going to create one.
I wanted to create a space for people who are passionate about design (regardless of whether or not they study/have studied it in school) to show case their work. With this motivation, I produced a show independently in 2025 that featured the work of over 20 designers/stylists and had over 40 looks walk the runway. The show also featured a live band and had a media team comprised of local photographers and videographers. The goal was to not just create an opportunity for myself, but for so many other people. The show garnered more attention than I thought it would in the Denton creative/fashion scene. The show sold out and we had people still coming to the door and asking to buy standing room. After the success of that show and the confirmation that other people were just as hungry for opportunity, I decided to build out a team and create not just another good show, but also a community. Monico had modeled for me before and we had modeled together in some college shows and I knew that he had a passion for the industry and for people. He has walked in New York Fashion Week as well as several Dallas shows such as The Bureau, and he is an accessories designer so I knew that he knew the ins and outs of a fashion show/the industry.
Monochrome Collective was born in the fall of 2025 when I pitched to Monico the idea of working together. He caught the vision and was just as eager as I was to build up community. Together we brought other people on to the Monochrome Collective team. We hosted our first show as a collective on April 10th of this year and it was an amazing success. It brought so many people together, allowed for creatives to network, created content for so many portfolios, and gave a stage to some amazing local designers. With the success of that show, we are excited to plan more events, not just fashion shows, but also community hang outs and other such events that give creatives the space to connect. Monochrome Collective is excited for what’s next!
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
The road has not always been smooth. Monico and I were both full-time college students with part-time jobs when we were planning and producing the collective’s first show. It was often hard to find time between classes, homework, and work shifts to plan the show. Time management was something we had to be very intentional about in order for our shows to be a success.
Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
Monochrome Collective is an arts collective that brings DFW local creatives together and gives them a stage for their work. Our mission is to build community by creating accessible opportunities for local creatives.
We have historically only hosted fashion shows but plan to host other fashion-oriented creative networking events. We are filling the opportunity gap for people who are passionate about designing/styling/modeling/photographing but haven’t had an avenue to showcase their work and get their name out there.
We are most proud of the sense of community that has come from Monochrome Collective: the connections that were made backstage, the collaborations that were born after the show, and the portfolios that have been strengthened by the help of other people’s skills.
Are there any important lessons you’ve learned that you can share with us?
Over-prepare and have contracts. There is so much that can go “wrong” or off-schedule on the day of the show and the days leading up to it. Coordinating designers, stylists, models, photographers, videographers, backstage assistants, volunteers, DJs, vendors, and ticket sales is a big feat and takes not just preparation but over-preparedness in order to ensure a seamless event. That means recruiting more photographers than you might think you need, having reliable backstage assistants, models on standby, and a plan B for most things. It also means having everything in writing. We learned the importance of having signed contracts for vendors, venues, models, and everything in between.
Something else we have learned along the way is that artists are yearning for a space to be seen. Basically, Audrey was not the only one hungry for an opportunity- most artists are.
Contact Info:
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/monochrome.dfw/
Image Credits
Giovanna Triguis, Esther Mawi, Evangeline Bradley, Jonah Severance
