Marc Bouwer is originally from Johannesburg, South Africa. He won the South African Vogue Young Designers Award before immigrating to the United States to work for Halston.

PETA Sponsors Marc Bouwer's Fall 2002 Show

NEW YORK, Feb 4,2002 / --- As a testament to the fact that the reflective, cooperative mood in New York City is in no danger of waning, PETA and arch-rival 7th on Sixth have been talking - and no manure, red paint or dead raccoons have been involved in the exchange.

In fact, the pie-in-your-face animal activists are sponsoring a Mercedes-Benz Fashion week show, with the blessing of Fern Mallis's organization, as well as the CFDA.

Marc Bouwer, the lucky designer to receive the PETA funds, will present his animal-product free fall 2002 collection in the Puck Building at 9pm on Valentine's Day. He's thrilled that "7th on Sixth has given PETA a platform to voice their concerns" and supports what he describes as the organization's new "kinder, gentler approach to the fashion industry."

He says his presentation will have no specific PETA-driven theme, but will be "a cruelty-free fashion show. Fashion should be painless, right?"

After September 11, PETA toned down its tactics in New York out of respect for the city's shell-shocked population. The organization lifted its long-time boycotts of fur-friendly department stores like Saks, Macy's and Bloomingdale's in support of Mayor Giuliani's call for shoppers to resume spending. Even abroad, PETA kept a low profile at the fall shows in Paris and Milan.

Earlier this month, however, the organization reverted to its traditionally aggressive tactics by storming the Paris couture presentations of Versace, Valentino and Jean-Paul Gaultier and brandishing "Fur Kills" posters.

PETA member Sean Gifford, one of the Paris runway crashers, didn't rule out similar activities during New York's Fashion Week next month. "Anyone who's designing with fur in the states is the target of compassionate people that are outraged that designers are still using the skins of animals," he warned us.

But it now looks like PETA will continue to foster its new nurturing image, in New York at least.

"We still disrupted and protested shows in Europe, but we thought now would be a good time to step back and consider that people in New York have hearts and minds that are a little bit more open," explains Dan Mathews, PETA's director of campaigns.

He hopes that other designers "will see from Mark's example what amazing things you can do with today's technology in terms of fake furs and leather. You can be creative without being destructive."

Bouwer confirms that there have been huge advances in the texture of faux fur, and says some faux leathers cost even more than real thing. "They feel wonderful and are more durable," he claims.

"We've been talking to Mark for a few years," says Mathews of the alliance. "He's somebody who's become extremely sympathetic."

Bouwer admits that in his early days he did design with fur. "I was a kid, of course I loved fur, and I did use it," he explains. For the last 15 years, however, he has used only faux fur and pleather.

"I became more educated as to exactly what goes on [in the fur trade]. And coming from Africa, I had first-hand experience with the realities of what poachers do to animals for their skins and tusks," explains the Johannesburg native.

Mathews sees this cooperation with Bouwer and 7th on Sixth as a perfect opportunity to "start fresh and have more communication with the designers, so they see us not as antagonists, but as people representing a very serious issue."

Spring 2007 (Photo by Giovanni Pucci)

Fall 2005 (Photo by Javier Mateo)

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