On April 18th, THE UNSCENE, an immersive event series founded and created by Valentino Bornancini, presented its first edition titled RAW MATERIAL in Brooklyn. The event brought together a community of creatives, performers, and emerging artists within a raw, experiential environment centered around fashion, sound, and spatial design.
THE UNSCENE was conceived from a long-standing desire to create something personal yet impactful within the art world. Bornancini describes the idea as rooted in a realization that many cultural spaces, particularly within fashion and music, have become increasingly exclusive over time. While not aiming to solve large-scale global issues, the intention was to build something meaningful within his own world, creating a platform that opens access and fosters a more inclusive environment for creative expression.
The concept began with fashion, music, and spatial design as equal pillars. Inspired by the scale and production of major fashion weeks in cities like New York and Paris, Bornancini recognized a broader desire for audiences to experience those environments firsthand. From there, music became a central force, not only as a performance element but as a way to integrate the energy of a fashion afterparty directly into the event itself, merging presentation and nightlife into one continuous experience.
To support this vision, the entire space was transformed through an immersive set build, turning the venue into a fully realized environment rather than a traditional event setting. Sculptural installations, constructed elements, and spatial interventions framed both the fashion presentation and the dance floor, allowing guests to move through and interact with the space as part of the experience itself.
At the core of RAW MATERIAL was a live fashion performance by The Air In Sin, whose sculptural garments explore form, texture, and identity. Rather than a traditional runway, the presentation unfolded within the environment, creating a more immediate and immersive interaction between the audience and the work.
Sound for the night was curated by DJ collective Neozeema, guiding the atmosphere through ambient compositions, live elements, and techno sets that carried the experience from evening into late night.
THE UNSCENE ultimately aims to create a non-exclusive platform where audiences can engage with fashion, music, and spatial design in a more accessible and integrated way. A key focus of the series is to highlight emerging and underground creatives, offering designers and musicians a space to present their work outside of traditional systems that often prioritize established names.
RAW MATERIAL set the tone for future editions, emphasizing raw expression, collaboration, and the blending of disciplines within a shared, open environment.
