The designer projects all Asian models for the New York Fashion Week parade

A designer made a big statement at New York Fashion Week.

In the spring of 2019, Claudia Li's show featured a track entirely composed of Asian models.

As far as the fashion industry is concerned, Asians can be mistaken for being a monolithic group, Li told HuffPost. She explained that she had made the particular choice of distribution to highlight the diversity and uniqueness of women of Asian descent.

"I often feel like the fashion industry is trying to tick a box – that is," We need an Asian girl for our show ". But what kind of Asia? A Filipina? Singaporean? Chinese? Korean? "Asian" does not mean a thing, "she said. "I think the word" Asian "just means a thing for a lot of people, and we are not just a note, there is incredible diversity."

The show, which was attended by big names including rapper and actress Awkwafina, was Li's very first event and was incredibly personal to her. Li, who grew up in New Zealand, said she went to school with a few other Asians and that people often assumed she would fit the model of the model minority. But she said that she was far from the submissive math nerve usually portrayed in mainstream media. She played field hockey and sang in a metal band. She even fled home as a high school student to be with a "super cute surfer" for a month before her father forced her to go home.

"As an Asian woman, I am automatically seen in a certain way. For me, it's about recognizing that in a race, there is also diversity, "she said. "There is not a standard Asian beauty. Every Asian woman has a different appearance and there are different personalities. Asian girls listen to punk rock, heavy metal and hip-hop. There is not a singular way of defining what is Asia.

In the end, she said, she was meant to celebrate individuality.

"It made me very proud to see an all-Asian track," she said. "I'm excited for the future of Fashion Week because it's an important conversation that needs to take place, not just for New York Fashion Week, but for every Fashion Week. "

Last year, Kenzo designers Carol Lim and Humberto Leon also showcased all Asian models for their Spring 2018 show, with several models imported from Japan, Korea and Taiwan.

"We hope to serve as an example to other houses to say that diversity is important and beautiful," Leon told Elle, inspired by Japanese musician Ryuichi Sakamoto and model Sayoko Yamaguchi. "It is important to give minorities in all areas a platform. In this case, we wanted to have a genuine approach. "