Cynthia Rowley Says Buckle Up
Courtesy of Cynthia Rowley.
Whenever we see fashion designer Cynthia Rowley around town, we talk cars. Rowley knows her classic cars, a love she attributes to her midwestern roots. Last year, Rowley partnered with Cadillac to launch her spring collection under the headlights projected by a fleet of Cadillac Lyriqs. She had also recently purchased her dream car, a 1988 two-door coupe Avanti, born out of the ashes of the Ohio-based Studebaker company. We look back on that conversation — a moment when fashion and cars met at an intersection off the West Side Highway.
Cynthia Rowley: Cadillac made my dream come true. It's one thing to have a crazy idea and try to make it a reality — that can feel impossible. But it's really thanks to Cadillac that we were able to do it. They had a vision and made it a reality in the most beautiful, most precise way. It really was a dream.
LE CAR: Using the headlights as the runway lighting — that was so genius. How did you dream that up?
CR: For me, a runway show is never about ego — presenting my work and saying this is how everyone should look next season. The reason to do a runway show is to bring inspiration to life and to inspire the crowd. It has to have energy and excitement around every aspect of it. People were saying it was going to be dark. And I was like, “exactly.” If you get seven or eight hundred people together for something, it better be a cool idea.
The inspiration came from walking down my long, skinny driveway at night to a car waiting to pick me up. I was walking toward the headlights, and I thought, “My God, this is making my clothes look amazing. This feels like a very rustic, beachy runway.” And that was the reason to do a runway show. Then we had to find the right venue. I was driving upstate to my friend’s house on the West Side Highway and I looked over and said, “What is that pier?” It looked like you could drive right into it. We were going 50 miles an hour. I was with my cousin and she said, "Only you could make a decision about a venue going fifty miles an hour." And I was like, “lock it in!” That’s where the show was.
The next issue was who would give us twenty cars? Our first choice was Cadillac, and our first choice was an EV. We wanted all black and all the same model and they made it happen.
“My nickname is Slim, so they call me Slim Fast — because I really like to drive fast.”
LC: You've always loved cars. You are looking at the car’s form. What are some favorites, or memories that pop into your head?
CR: There are so many. My latest in my string of vintage cars — I finally got my dream car, which is a 1988 Avanti, originally made by Studebaker.
LC: Where are you driving it?
CR: It lives in Montauk. I store it over winter, but in the summer that's what I drive around — with a surfboard sticking out the back. It's a rag top. It a really fun car to drive.
LC: What made it your dream car — a memory, the styling, the vibe?
CR: In high school, the most popular girl — captain of the cheerleading squad, long blond hair — her dad had a Cadillac dealership in our hometown. She drove a white Avanti to high school. In my mind it's all in slow motion: she pulls up, gets out, flips her hair, jogs into school. And I was like, someday that would be my dream. I waited a long time and I finally got it.
LC: Where did you grow up?
CR: Barrington, Illinois.
LC: I'm from Michigan, so I can picture that Midwestern car culture completely.
CR: Cars were everything. I got my driver's license on my sixteenth birthday — that morning. My dad's best friend had just gotten a brand-new Eldorado convertible. The day I came back from getting my license, he handed me the keys. It was a ragtop also. He told me he needed gas and asked if I would mind taking it down to the gas station and filling it up? He peeled off a c-note and I drove off in that car. When I got to the station the guy was like it’s, already full. Then I was like, oh, I get it — he just wanted to let me drive it. I'll never forget that feeling.
LC: Are you the driver in your family?
CR: My girls both drive. I tried to teach them myself and we decided it was better to hire a professional. But they both love it. My youngest, GG, the first time she took out the Avanti she said, "Can I drive it?" When she came back she said, "I get it. I get why you love this. I get why you love driving." She understood right away.
LC: Are you a slow cruiser or do you like speed?
“I was telling everyone who was coming to the show, I was like “buckle your seat belt.”
CR: My nickname is Slim, so they call me Slim Fast — because I really like to drive fast.
Photo: @CynthiaRowley/Instagram
LC: Did you get to drive any of the Lyriqs from the show?
CR: I didn't actually get behind the wheel, but I looked inside and they're really gorgeous, inside and out. I hope I get to drive one soon.
LC: I hope you do more in the car-and-fashion intersection. The show was so different and so cool.
CR: I was telling everyone who was coming to the show, I was like “buckle your seat belt.”
LC: It had a Pinky Tuscadero energy — the risers, the industrial pier, the aesthetic.
CR: It was like the ultimate luxurious high school football game vibe.
LC: You took it back to the high school memory — pulling up to the school in style.
CR: And it's funny — I don't get to see much from where I'm standing during the show, but watching the video back, seeing the crowd's reaction. The cars got people really hyped.