She is AYT: A Conversation on Movement and Self Expression with Leslie Andrea Williams
Leslie Andrea Williams is the lead dancer of the Martha Graham Dance Company — one of the most influential modern dance companies in the world, founded in 1926 — and a singer, actress, and visual artist. In this chapter of AYT Studio’s “She is AYT” portrait series, conceived by founder Yasmine Azizi, Leslie wears the Temperance dress, a wearable art piece born from French artist Remed’s painting of the same name. She explores how dance, identity, and clothing converge into a vision of fashion as art you can wear. Filmed at Fondation Florence, this portrait captures the intersection of movement, fabric, and self-expression that defines AYT Studio’s art-to-wear philosophy.
SHE IS AYT — A portrait series by AYT Studio
She is AYT is a series of portraits conceived and conducted by Yasmine Azizi, founder of AYT Studio — a Paris-based art-to-wear fashion brand that transforms original artworks into wearable pieces. A celebration of women who embody what AYT believes fashion can be: not just something you wear, but something you carry, something that tells who you are. Each chapter, a woman. Each woman, a story. Each story, a piece.
Leslie Andrea Williams: dancer, singer, visual artist
Leslie Andrea Williams is that woman. Lead dancer with the Martha Graham Dance Company — one of the oldest and most influential modern dance companies in the world, founded in 1926 — she is also a singer, an actress, a visual artist. Someone who has never understood creativity as a single lane. Whatever she does, she does it fully, with her whole self. That totality is what makes her presence so striking, on stage and off.
On identity and fierceness
Which words would define you best?
“Passionate, creative, chameleon, fierce, loving, and open.”
And in what sense do you say fierce?
“In the sense that it took real work to earn that fierceness. People sometimes confuse it with arrogance, but true fierceness rises from humility. I wear it with pride because I carry my family, my ancestors, my gods with me. They support me, they protect me. So when I dance — or simply move through the world — I feel their strength. That fierceness is not only mine. It comes from everyone standing behind me.”
On movement and stillness
Where do you feel most yourself — in movement or in stillness?
“The purest form of me is in movement. But in stillness, that’s where I can reflect, discover, conjure, find something within. When I’m still, I go deeper, but when I move, whatever’s inside comes out. You have to have both worlds.”
On the experience of dance
When you dance, what do you feel?
“There is definitely a trance that happens. If you practice enough, give yourself enough to the work you’re doing, committing yourself 100%, you can really reach new thresholds. When you’re in that state of knowing exactly what you’re doing, you can also be open to the instant. That’s what Martha always says — be born to the instant. If you really allow yourself to be open to whatever is happening in the present moment, something new can be born, something new can emerge.”
On dance as a creative avenue
What inspired you to give dance such an important place in your life?
“Dance is an avenue. It’s a way to connect to all the other things I practice with my creativity. Dance is something I’ve done since I was three years old, and it’s one of those things I didn’t necessarily go to — it came to me. The Martha Graham work fell into my lap. It embraced me with its theatricality and its physicality. I feel like Martha’s work encompasses every form of art — music, fashion, sculpture, and of course dance. So dance is one way for me to express myself, but when I’m not dancing, I’m singing, or acting, or drawing, or doing something else. Everything I do in dance connects to — and inspires — all the other things I create.”
On multidisciplinary art
How did you jump into different forms of art — and what role do they play in your life?
“It started in childhood. I had my own fashion line — Pink Bug Fashion. I would sketch little outfits, make my own magazine, write songs. All of those things led into what I’m doing today. When you’re young, you don’t judge what you’re doing. I try to tap into that, because it helps you find that flow state — just doing what feels good in the moment and not judging it. And then it becomes something that maybe could be real for other people to see. But if it’s not, that’s okay. It has to start somewhere.”
On clothing and identity
What is your relationship with clothing and fashion?
“Fashion and clothing really helped me form my identity. When I get dressed in the morning, I’m kind of channeling a different person. I ask myself: who is she today? Who is she going to be? I read a lot about Carl Jung — he talks about the masculine and feminine elements present in everyone. Because I’m a woman, yes, I can express myself in a feminine manner. But I can also tap into the masculine side of myself — because we all have both. Clothing is what you put on to show the world who you are. RuPaul says: you’re born naked, and the rest is drag. So when I say I’m a chameleon, it really is about that — tapping into a different energy, a different spirit each time you get dressed. Which is so fun. I love it.”
The Temperance dress by AYT Studio
For this chapter, Leslie dances at Fondation Florence in the Temperance dress — a wearable art piece born from French artist Remed’s painting of the same name. For her, clothing has always been an act of self-definition, and the body the truest form of expression. Wearing Temperance, she brings both together — dance, skin, fabric, and art collapsing into a single image of feminine force.
Discover the Temperance dress and the full AYT Studio collection — wearable art born from collaborations with contemporary artists. Find the piece that tells your story at aytstudio.com.
FAQ
Who is Leslie Andrea Williams?
Leslie Andrea Williams is the lead dancer of the Martha Graham Dance Company, one of the most influential modern dance companies in the world, founded in 1926. She is also a singer, actress, and visual artist. She is the subject of a chapter of AYT Studio’s “She is AYT” portrait series.
What is the Temperance dress by AYT Studio?
The Temperance dress is a wearable art piece created by AYT Studio, born from a painting by French artist Remed. Leslie Andrea Williams wore it for the “She is AYT” shoot at Fondation Florence.
What is AYT Studio?
AYT Studio is a Paris-based art-to-wear fashion brand founded by Yasmine Azizi. The brand creates wearable art by collaborating with contemporary artists and transforming their original works into unique clothing pieces.
What is the “She is AYT” series?
“She is AYT” is a series of editorial portraits conceived by Yasmine Azizi, founder of AYT Studio. Each chapter features a woman who embodies AYT’s vision of fashion as self-expression, art, and identity.
How does AYT Studio collaborate with artists?
AYT Studio partners with contemporary artists by transforming their original artworks into wearable fashion pieces. Each collaboration results in a limited piece that carries the artist’s vision into clothing.
Where was the Leslie portrait filmed?
At Fondation Florence. Leslie dances in the Temperance dress, born from French artist Remed’s painting.
What is the Martha Graham Dance Company?
Founded in 1926 in New York, it is one of the oldest and most influential modern dance companies in the world. Leslie Andrea Williams is its current lead dancer.
| Theme | Key information |
| Portrait subject | Leslie Andrea Williams, lead dancer, Martha Graham Dance Company |
| Disciplines | Dance, singing, acting, visual art |
| AYT Studio piece | The Temperance dress, born from a painting by Remed |
| Artist collaboration | Remed (French contemporary artist) |
| Shooting location | Fondation Florence |
| Series | “She is AYT”, conceived by Yasmine Azizi |
| Brand | AYT Studio, Paris-based art-to-wear fashion |
| Core theme | Fashion as self-expression, identity, art you carry |
| Target keywords | wearable art, art-to-wear fashion, AYT Studio, Leslie Andrea Williams |
