Zoe Walker Ahwa

1 week ago | ensemblemagazine.co.nz | Zoe Walker Ahwa

They’re everywhere, once you start looking. On pop stars working with conversation-starter stylists: Addison Rae in a hipstercore American Apparel-coded purple zip-up (styled by Dara for her Headphones On video), or Lorde in a minimalist grey version adorned with brooches (styled by Taylor McNeill). On Romy Mars, daughter of Sofia Coppola, in her charmingly bratty TikToks. On the streets of Tāmaki Makaurau, worn by cool young things with low-slung jeans.

1 month ago | ensemblemagazine.co.nz | Zoe Walker Ahwa

This story was originally published on our Substack for paid subscribers. Read the full story, and help secure the future of Ensemble, by becoming a paid subscriber for $7 a month or $75 a year. In March 2023 I wrote an opinion piece bluntly declaring, “It’s time for Air NZ to update its uniforms”. Two months later, the airline announced exactly that: after 12 years, they were looking for a new designer to give it an update.

1 month ago | ensemblemagazine.co.nz | Zoe Walker Ahwa

A few weeks ago we popped into Kowtow’s Newmarket store, where Rebecca and I gravitated towards two dresses that really summed up our individual vibes: me, A-line polka dots and her, a bright yellow “sack” (not an insult, she’d describe it and many of the dresses in her wardrobe that way). She loved it so much that she bought it on the spot, wore it out of the store and later packed it for her trip to Hawke’s Bay.

1 month ago | ensemblemagazine.co.nz | Zoe Walker Ahwa

A purple curtain sits in the middle of the main room of Gus Fisher Gallery Te Whare Toi o Gus Fisher, with vintage television sets on either side playing video works from nine iconic feminist artists. The curtain is the centre of Having it all, all, all, a powerful and entertaining exhibition exploring the activism and identity politics of Second Wave Feminism and its critiques.

2 months ago | ensemblemagazine.co.nz | Zoe Walker Ahwa

The sparkling heart is my most-used emoji, I own Collina Strada’s rhinestone-covered water bottle and rhinestone collars for my two cats – but my actual wardrobe is entirely free of sequins, glitter or embellishment (I’m clearly more of a minimalist than I thought…). So when we hosted our Ensemble Presents screening of The Last Showgirl last month, I knew that our ‘razzle dazzle’ dress code would be near impossible.