5 min read
Amelia Gray and Iris Law come to New York from opposite sides of the Atlantic—or, in Gray’s case, from across the country. But the city has left its mark on both, shaping the way they dress and see fashion. For DKNY’s fall 2026 campaign, they put their own spin on the brand’s New York attitude.
Captured by photographer Mikael Jansson around New York, Gray and Law trade the same pinstriped minidress and faux fur coat back and forth, styling each look in their own way. For both models, a sense of nostalgia and personal expression runs through their style and their first memories of the brand.
Mikael Jansson
“When my sister and I first started borrowing my mom’s clothes, we were fighting over her DKNY pieces,” Gray recalls, referring to matriarch Lisa Rinna’s collection. Law, who grew up in London as the daughter of actors Jude Law and Sadie Frost, carries a different but similarly sentimental connection to the brand: She recalls seeing its campaigns and billboards when she was in New York. Now, the two bring those memories—and their own distinct takes on downtown style—to the same conversation.
Here, Gray and Law take ELLE behind the scenes of their DKNY campaign and talk personal style, favorite New York spots, and the pieces they can’t stop wearing—or can’t stop searching for.
What are your earliest memories of DKNY?
Amelia Gray: A vintage DKNY piece that comes to mind is my mom’s logomania Backpack. I used to steal it from her and wear it all the time when I was younger! It feels like such a full-circle moment to now be representing the brand and be the face of this campaign. It’s really special to me.
Iris Law: I have really clear memories of the billboards. I remember going to New York and DKNY was always present—amazing campaigns, amazing people representing the brand.
Mikael Jansson
Did anything surprise you about working together?
AG: I love Iris. She’s so unique. There’s nobody like her on this planet; I will tell you that. She and my sister remind me of each other—haircut aside, they have such similar personalities. The whole time we were on set, I felt like I was with my sister. We were just ordering matcha after matcha, trying random foods. We were getting chased by paparazzi the whole time we were trying to shoot and we were just yelling, “You’re going to run in. You can’t put those photos out.” And of course they did.
IL: What’s really nice about doing a multi-woman shoot is playing between different roles and different energies. You can have a really multifaceted day where she’s the stronger face, the stronger pose, the stronger look, and then contrasting that with something more feminine, or we’re both androgynous or more masculine.
How do you compare New York style to Los Angeles and London style?
AG: A big reason I moved to New York was to find my personal sense of style. I’ve lived in New York for the past five years and I’ve only just made my way back to L.A. But when I was choosing where I wanted to live in the city, I based it on how people dressed. My first two or three apartments in New York were on the Lower East Side because I felt inspired by the way people were dressing and how different it was compared to, say, the Upper East Side, which I don’t really resonate with.
IL: The U.K. has come out with so many innovative waves of fashion, but I’d say in this day and age, there’s such a boldness to the way that young women and men in New York dress up every day.
Mikael Jansson
The campaign celebrates shared style through the lens of individuality. What defines each of your approaches to fashion?
AG: I really like being comfortable, and I think Iris resonates with that. She chooses comfort first. Like right now, I’m sitting on the edge of a lake wearing sweatpants that I cut into long, baggy shorts that have bear paws on the butt. I’m wearing slippers with high white socks and a white tank top, and I couldn’t feel more like myself.
IL: There was a TikTok someone made about my style not long ago, and I really liked it. It was saying, “Iris Law really dresses to be happy.” That’s exactly it. I don’t really look outward for inspiration. I also get really overstimulated by clothes; I probably cut my options of what to wear in half. They make me too uncomfortable.
Do you know what I’m never going to do again? I remember going on set and wearing jeans and a tight vest and some little pumps and putting that back on after a 12-hour day. Horrible.
What are the New York spots you always return to?
AG: I have to go to The Corner Store. I love just being super low on the Lower East Side and walking into stores I don’t even know the names of. Like 194 New York, they originated in London—when I lived there for a few months, I’d walk to that store every day and they have the craziest vintage pieces.
Mikael Jansson
IL: Procell. It’s probably an obvious answer. But I don’t like spending large amounts of money on clothes. I love going vintage shopping and finding loads of really lovely things for like $15 and giving them a new life. That’s my favorite way to shop.
Are there any pieces in your wardrobes that have become especially meaningful to you?
AG: I’ve been highly obsessed with Gucci by Tom Ford recently—I got that from my mom, but I never really understood it when she was introducing me to it. Now that I’m working so closely with Gucci as a brand and as a model, I feel a lot more connected to it. I have these really incredible Tom Ford Gucci dresses that I’ve bought, I just haven’t had the chance to wear them.
IL: My favorite is an Ann Demeulemeester Dada top, which I recently ripped in half because I would wear it every single day, and one of the holes got stuck in my zip. It’s so sad. Do you know what else I want to find? That Comme des Fuckdown top from like, 2010.
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.