Annual World AIDS Day fashion show: Strut takes the runway

On the evening of Nov. 22, John Fleming Jr. and his Mad Man Productions presented Strut, the annual World AIDS Day Fashion Show. The event, now in its seventh year, took place at Alhambra Palace Restaurant, 1240 W. Randolph St., Chicago

Modeled were clothing designs by graduating seniors of two of Chicago’s most prestigious art and design schools, Columbia College and The School of the Art Institute of Chicago, and work by designers including Yesenia Villarreal, Eddie Couture, Iridium, Vex Clothing, Compton Quashie, JaJa, Rebecca Blanton, Undergear, Kraig Pieper, Island Furs, PRSVR, and Zach Nie.

With co-sponsorship from Kimberly Mack, The Chicago Center for HIV Elimination at The University of Chicago, The Men of Onyx, and The Chicago House of Chicken and Waffles, this new version of the event was moved to a larger venue from the previous years’ Excalibur Night Club.

Dr. John Schneider MD, MPH of The Chicago Center for HIV Elimination, opened the evening with remarks about the breakthrough of PrEP treatment and the need for more HIV testing and treatment on Chicago’s south side. He was followed by Kimberly Mack, director of operations for The Chicago Home of Chicken and Waffles, who was also a model in the show.

Fleming created, produced, and started Strut in 2009 as a unique way to acknowledge and promote World AIDS Day. A portion of the proceeds from Strut go to HIV/AIDS service organizations throughout the city.