Prabal Gurung sent his New York Fashion Week models down a long, stark runway Saturday in the shadow of the United Nations wearing an explosion of sheers and colors as an ode to the misfits of the world who are “often watched and monitored, scrutinized but unseen.”

The designer told The Associated Press he discovered an industrial space in the former home of the Japanese consulate while on a bike ride on Manhattan’s East Side. He turned it into a white runway that made his revealing metallics, bondage looks and neon bright pop.

“I wanted to create a space for this particular show where we felt what we are feeling in the culture itself: Kind of unsure politically, culturally, but we still want to be hopeful, want to be optimistic,” he said. “I needed to be near the reminder of the U.N. that our job in fashion is not done until we are alert and vigilant.”

Over the last year, Gurung said, he found his hope and optimism fading as the “status quo, the patriarchy,” seemed ever more unnerved over those who resist “regressive values.”