It was February 24, 2020 when Kenneth Ize debuted on the Paris runway. His show caught the world’s attention—a cameo by Naomi Campbell can do that for a young designer. Then came the pandemic, which was hard on fashion brands of all sizes. Covid could’ve derailed him, but he was busier than ever. Ize spent the lockdowns developing a capsule collaboration with the Karl Lagerfeld label, a first for that brand since the passing of its legendary founder. And he also produced two collections of his own.

Pieces from those outings have been spotted in the front rows during fashion month. One of his clients said she buys his pieces because the traditional asoke fabric he has handwoven in Nigeria has “the hand-feel of couture.” That feels apropos of his new collection, which includes a handful of evening looks woven with shimmery gold threads, the best being a paneled ankle-length slip dress finished with hip-grazing gilded fringe. “It feels like a new dawn for me,” he said backstage, indicating his optimism about the young people coming up in the wake of the pandemic, who think differently than the generations before.

Ize is one of those different thinkers. He’s built a factory in Ilorin, Nigeria, and 80% of his fabrics are woven there, with most finishings done in Italy. Beyond this season’s couture-ish gold dresses, his positivity came through in recolored versions of designs he’s shown in the past. After last season’s more somber palette his striped and checked wovens were eye-opening. Ditto a new lace pattern pant suit, and double ditto the silk knitwear in variegated red, green, light blue, and indigo stripes. His runway bride wore a sleeveless white column in white asoke with gold totems embroidered on its bodice. “It’s the cleanest thing I’ve ever done,” he said. We knew Ize could do exuberant; turns out he can do understated too.