The big-name designers at fashion week, from Anna Sui to Y & Kei, display their wares at the tents in Bryant Park. But some up-and-coming designers, many of whom can’t afford the steep price of showing in the tents, will also show their spring looks this week at several other Manhattan locations.

The arts and entertainment organization Gen Art, for example, will present its 11th annual Fresh Faces in Fashion show Friday at the Manhattan Center on 34th Street between Eighth and Ninth avenues. Billed as an outlet for emerging designers, the event is sponsored by L’Oreal Feria and is free to participants.

“A lot of these designers are financing their own line on their credit card or by doing freelance work, and they don’t have a lot of cash lying around,” said the fashion director of Gen Art, Mary Gehlhar. “They just need to show up with their collections and their music.”

Tents at Bryant Park, Ms. Gehlhar added, cost at least $30,000. “The sky’s the limit when it comes to runway shows.”

Overall, 12 designers – six with women’s wear, four with accessories, and two with men’s wear – will display small collections of 10 looks each. The runway presentation, which starts at 6 p.m., is expected to last about a half-hour. Participants include Lynne Larson, known for her avant-garde yet wearable women’s wear, and Octopi, whose women’s collection is marked by unexpected shapes and silhouettes.

“It’s a diverse group that we feel could be the next big names,” Ms. Gehlhar said.

On Sunday afternoon, there’s Fashion Flipside, a bigger event on the Lower East Side. More than 40 designers, from the emerging Selma Karaca to the already established Rebecca Minkoff, will be showing looks from swimwear to lingerie to couture evening wear.

“A good representation of the Lower East Side is a little bit of everything,” said Angela “Lala” Lowe, owner of the production company of the event, Funky Lala Productions. The event is open to the public.

At StyleLounge, designers David Rodriguez and Andrew Harmon will extend a T-shaped runway from the studio six feet out onto the Times Square sidewalk, making their shows far more public than the heavily guarded tents just a few blocks away. (Other designers at StyleLounge will display their wares inside Times Square Studios.)

“When you’re in the park, you’re in a contained area,” Mr. Rodriguez said. “In this venue, there’s no mistaking you’re right in New York. If you’re a tourist walking through Times Square, I think you’re going to see a great show.”

Though many designers who are showing at alternative venues no doubt aspire to be ushered into the Bryant Park Tents, there’s also some pride in eschewing the mainstream. As Mr. Rodriguez put it, “The park is generally more of an establishment kind of venue.” For fashion outside the box, think outside the tent.