While many designers chase trends, there are others who use clothing as a way to dig out deeper meanings, Peruvian designer Brunela Ramirez is one of them. For her, garments are not just objects to be worn but tools of exploration, they are more like vessels that can carry memory, identity, and transformation.
In 2020, Ramirez developed Glitched Humanity, the first collection that explored genderless clothing as a central idea. “I was fascinated by how collaborators embodied the garments,” she recalls. “Each brought their own energy and story.” The results were raw and transformative. Glitched Humanity appeared in Alexia Bosch’s music videos, on album covers, in magazines, and even in a Skullcandy Peru campaign. More importantly, it became part of Peru’s cultural conversation, reflecting a moment when genderless clothing and fluid identity were beginning to find wider resonance. “For me, Glitched Humanity marked the moment I understood fashion not just as clothing, but as a language of freedom, identity, and transformation.”
The image from Glitched Humanity captures Brunela Ramirez’s instinct to disrupt conventions. The oversized jacket with texture and streaked with red embroidery, is with energy. The look suggests both rebellion and vulnerability. The exposed chest contrasts with the protective bulk of the jacket, creating a dialogue between openness and armor.
In the music video De Papel by Alexia Bosch, Brunela Ramirez’s Glitched Humanity takes on another life. The asymmetrical, sculptural dress, which layered in shifting textures can mirror the song’s emotional intensity. The outfit becomes more than a costume in a music video, it’s a vessel for attitude and vulnerability. The clothes move with the music, where music and fashion fuse into one story.
Peruvian culture is rooted into Ramirez’s creative vision, something she never hesitates to share. When people talk about Peru, they will always think of the mysterious country, full of legends and myth. “Beyond the traditional and tangible aspects of culture, it was the words, stories, and sounds that inspired me to create and shape my own vision, the mystery, the symbolism. Peru is a country full of visual expression, yet often with fewer words; I believe much of what we want to say comes through in our work.” Seeing the diversity of her country also pushed Ramirez to build a brand that is inclusive, one that appreciates and values differences without turning them into categories. “Also, I feel that the different urban subcultures in Peru have influenced my perspective as a designer. Learning more about punk and rock music groups, movements that were once very subversive and well-received but eventually declined, made me want to fight for my vision and bring something different to the table. I don’t directly reference these influences in a visual way, but their essence lives in my work, especially in the social perspective and creative mentality that many Peruvians embody when pursuing art.”
Glitched Humanity, becomes part of a larger metaphor: identity in flux, never linear, always shifting. It’s not fashion as decoration, but as confrontation, seems like it is with the self, with society, with expectation. Ramirez’s project wasn’t about clothes alone; it was about giving form to the fractures and possibilities of a new way of being seen. We can also paint a designer’s journey between two worlds: Lima and New York, material and virtual, tradition and reinvention. For Brunela Ramirez, fashion is not just about what we wear, it is about why we create, and how those creations become part of who we are.
