She was thisclose to demanding to see “ Project Runway‘s” manager. Finally, she stormed out over the fact that no one was on her side. Jean-Baptiste called her “fake.” Then Ferguson yelled at Barlis again for not defending her against Jean-Baptiste.

When she was back at her work station with her new model Trevor, she complained, “Apparently, I can only design for white people.” But Trevor, also uncomfortable with the conforntation, told her, “Just don’t yell at me like that, yeah?” At that point, she suggested sexism was the reason anyone would be upset about her unprofessional behavior in front of their models and fellow designers. SEE ‘Project Runway’ season 19 premiere recap: Bones, bows, and monochrome in the first challenge, ‘A Colorful Return’ “We don’t have to make this so awkward … We don’t have to do this,” said Barlis, trying to diffuse the tension. “I think it’s f*cking bullsh*t that you’re doing this now,” she told Barlis - in front of the two models in question. But she made sure to do it with as much open hostility and resentment as possible. She insisted that the swap take place, perhaps fearing that she would be seen as a hypocrite if she refused his request. Neither decision would have hurt her ally bona fides.īut she didn’t do either of those things. She could have politely declined his request and perhaps offered to make it up to him in a later challenge, or she could have just peacefully swapped models and made it work. No one would have batted an eye if she told him she couldn’t make it work so late into the challenge. He assured her that she could say no if she’d rather not switch to a model with a different look and measurements so late in the challenge. Seeing this, Kenneth Barlis, who is of Filipino descent, realized he would rather design his Asian-inspired look for an Asian model, so he asked to swap with Ferguson.Īnd the shy Barlis was as accommodating as he could possibly have been.

Castillo was reluctant, but she seemed to understand how important it was to Jean-Baptiste, and there was no drama between them (and neither of them suffered when the judges got a look at their looks in the end). Jean-Baptiste eventually swapped with Coral Castillo, giving him the Black model that would make his design more culturally appropriate. SEE ‘Project Runway’ season 19 episode 2 recap: Explosive drama in the workroom almost derails ‘#Streetwear’ challenge Lesson number-one: if you’re talking over and past the person you’re advocating for, you’re not being an ally, you’re making it about yourself. Ferguson was on his side, but went on about cultural appropriation so aggressively that her support started to make him uncomfortable. The Haitian-born designer wanted to create a look inspired by centuries of struggle and exploitation for the island nation, but he was the last to choose models, and he felt uncomfortable designing his Haitian-inspired outfit for the white model he was left with. It started when she was discussing ideas with her fellow competitor Prajje Oscar Jean-Baptiste.

Project runway season 4 episode 2