Ground Zero becomes backdrop for fashion show

By Christine Kearney

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Fifty-two floors high in the Manhattan sky, Emina Cunmulaj sits backstage with other lanky young models looking out a wall of windows onto an empty black hole amid the dense downtown lights.

Cunmulaj appears comfortable amid the backstage tensions typical of fashion galas, but not with the chasm where the World Trade Center stood until the September 11 attacks.

"It's definitely a weird thing," the 22-year-old said of the top-floor choice at 7 World Trade Center for the Miss Sixty show Thursday night as part of New York's Fashion Week.

"I was a little shocked to tell you the truth, because one of my family's friends died on 9/11 ... and I had never been back since," the Albanian-American model said.

As much of the 16-acre (6.5-hectare) World Trade Center site remains a dusty pit, plagued with political squabbles over its rebuilding and plans to attract companies back downtown, some fashion designers have decided it's the next hip thing as the scene for their runway shows.

Owned by World Trade Center leaseholder Larry Silverstein, 7 World Trade Center is the first building on the site to have been erected since 9/11 and abuts Ground Zero.

With 10 floors of the building yet to be leased, Italian denim female label Miss Sixty and American menswear designer John Varvatos are holding fashion shows for the first time, taking advantage of its top floors offering stunning 360-degree Manhattan views. Calvin Klein began the trend, hosting a Fashion Week party in the building late last year after the structure was officially opened.

Miss Sixty creative director Wichy Hassan said it was important to hold the show downtown, "especially because the tragedy of 9/11."

"I know that fashion is something light and not too serious, but I think it is important to give a little contribution to this part of the town with our fashion show," said Hassan.

Designer John Varvatos said he chose the site as an innovative change to the usual location at the tents in midtown Manhattan's Bryant Park, which is hosting Fashion Week this season for the last time.

"Since 9/11, it has taken a while for that area to build back up and have people venture back down there," he said in a telephone interview before his show. "Everybody is very excited we are right on the edge of the site."

The decision was also designed to pressure politicians to speed up the rebuilding effort, Varvatos said.

"We just can't get our act together as a city and finalizing what we are doing down there and I want more people to be aware we shouldn't be standing still," he said.

Another model backstage, Zuzana Gregorova, said the location was unique.

"It is a nice view, except you keep thinking about what happened, but I think you have to get over it," said the 17-year-old Slovakian.