The Unseen Evolution: Where Are The Designers Of Creatures Of The Wind Now? (2025 Update)
The iconic New York fashion label Creatures of the Wind, founded by the visionary duo Shane Gabier and Christopher Peters, remains a touchstone for modern eclecticism, but its public status has been a mystery to many fans since its last major runway show. As of late 2024 and early 2025, the brand itself has transitioned away from the traditional fashion calendar, choosing a path of quiet influence rather than seasonal spectacle. This shift has allowed its founders to embark on fascinating and highly-praised new creative endeavors, confirming that the spirit of Creatures of the Wind is not gone—it has simply fractured into two compelling new forms of artistic expression.
The label, celebrated for its unique blend of high-concept references—from Neo-paganism to folk art—with wearable, textured designs, was a critical darling for over a decade. While the brand is considered to be on an indefinite hiatus from runway presentations, its legacy continues to inspire, and you can still find authenticated pieces on luxury consignment platforms like The RealReal and Vestiaire Collective. The real story, however, is the fascinating and completely fresh update on what its two brilliant designers are doing now.
The Creative Biographies and Current Endeavors of Shane Gabier and Christopher Peters
The partnership between Shane Gabier and Christopher Peters was the engine of Creatures of the Wind, a brand that consistently challenged the norms of New York Fashion Week (NYFW). Their journey together began in Chicago before they moved to New York to launch the label that would earn them critical acclaim and a coveted runner-up spot in the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund.
Shane Gabier: The Pivot to Brutalist Ceramics and Design
- Role at Creatures of the Wind: Co-Founder, Designer.
- Education: Graduate of The School of The Art Institute of Chicago.
- Current Career Focus (2024-2025): Full-time ceramic artist and designer.
- Current Aesthetic: Informed by Modernist design, 70s psychedelia, and Brutalist architecture. His work is known for its gloriously hued and interestingly textured forms.
- Recent Recognition: Featured in the 2024 American Design Hot List for his impactful work in the design space.
- 2025 Projects: Focusing on new, larger-scale sculptural projects and exhibitions in early 2025.
Christopher Peters: The Launch of CDLM and Sustainable Reworking
- Role at Creatures of the Wind: Co-Founder, Designer.
- Education: Graduate of The School of The Art Institute of Chicago.
- Current Career Focus (2024-2025): Founder and designer of the new fashion label, CDLM (which stands for Chris Peters of Creatures of the Wind).
- CDLM Philosophy: Focuses on sustainable practices, particularly reworking vintage and deadstock clothing into new, relaxed tailoring and highly conceptual garments.
- CDLM Debut: The label made its debut at NYFW shortly after Creatures of the Wind went on hiatus from the runway, signaling a new, solo chapter in Peters' career.
- Notable Collaborations: His debut show featured appearances by cultural figures like Warhol muse John Giorno and actor Tavi Gevinson.
The End of the Runway: Why Creatures of the Wind Stepped Back
The last major collection from Creatures of the Wind was Spring/Summer 2018 (SS18), titled “Further.” This collection, which explored expansion of ideas through vibrant colors and progressive silhouettes, proved to be their final statement on the traditional runway. The decision to cease runway shows was a deliberate move by Gabier and Peters to step away from the relentless pace of the industry, a trend many independent designers have followed in recent years.
The fashion world was not entirely surprised by the shift. The brand had always operated with a high-concept, independent spirit, making the pressure of the seasonal calendar a constant friction point. By stepping back, the duo freed themselves from the commercial demands of mass production and the high costs of a New York Fashion Week show, allowing them to pursue more personal, passion-driven projects.
This "hiatus" allowed for a fundamental re-evaluation of their creative output. For Gabier, it meant a complete pivot to the tactile world of ceramics. For Peters, it meant channeling the Creatures of the Wind energy into a more focused, sustainable, and less commercially-driven fashion project: CDLM.
The Enduring Legacy of Creatures of the Wind's Aesthetic
Despite the brand’s shift in status, the "Creatures of the Wind" name remains synonymous with a specific, highly influential aesthetic. Their work was a masterclass in modern eclecticism, blending seemingly disparate influences into cohesive, emotional collections. This topical authority is built on several key design pillars:
The Folk and Neo-Pagan Influence
One of the most defining characteristics of the brand was its deep dive into folklore, mythology, and Neo-paganism. This often manifested in the use of rich textures, natural fibers, and prints that evoked a sense of ancient ritual or modern witchcraft. The clothes felt lived-in, layered with narrative, and imbued with a kind of spiritual energy that was rare on the high-fashion runway. This connection to "creatures" and the "wind"—elements of nature and myth—was central to the brand's identity.
Texture and Color as Narrative Tools
Gabier and Peters were masters of texture. Collections often featured a juxtaposition of materials: heavy tweeds next to sheer silks, raw edges against polished finishes, and intricate handwork. Their color palettes were equally complex, moving beyond simple primaries to embrace psychedelic hues, muted earth tones, and unexpected pops of neon, reflecting their diverse influences, including 70s psychedelia.
The Rise of CDLM: A Sustainable Evolution
Christopher Peters’ new label, CDLM, is perhaps the most direct continuation of the Creatures of the Wind spirit, but with a critical modern update: sustainability. CDLM’s core practice is turning "wrecks into wonders" by collecting and reworking vintage and deadstock materials. This focus on upcycling and relaxed tailoring is a direct response to the industry's waste problem, proving that Peters' conceptual rigor can be applied to a more ethical, conscious fashion model. The label’s aesthetic is a more focused, raw, and equally conceptual take on the eclectic vision that defined his previous work.
From Fashion to Fine Art: Shane Gabier’s New Creative Form
Shane Gabier’s transition from a fashion designer to a celebrated ceramic artist is one of the most compelling updates of the duo’s post-Creatures careers. His new work is a tangible expression of the same aesthetic principles that guided the fashion label: a preoccupation with form, color, and texture.
His ceramics are deeply informed by structural and artistic movements, particularly Brutalist architecture and Modernist design. Unlike the ephemeral nature of a runway show, Gabier’s current pieces are solid, permanent, and sculptural, allowing him to explore his artistic interests on a larger scale. His inclusion in the 2024 American Design Hot List is a testament to the fact that his creative vision is just as potent in the world of fine art and collectible design as it was in fashion, with new exhibitions and large-scale projects planned for 2025.
The story of Creatures of the Wind is not one of a brand closure, but of a purposeful creative metamorphosis. Shane Gabier and Christopher Peters have proven that true artistic vision cannot be contained by one medium or one calendar. Instead, it flows, like the wind itself, into new and surprising forms—one in the sustainable, conceptual fashion of CDLM, and the other in the bold, textural ceramics of Shane Gabier’s solo practice. Their collective legacy continues to be one of influential, boundary-pushing design.
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