“I think this collection brings together a lot of things that have existed within previous collections and unifies them into one show,” Dion Lee described his spring collection, later adding, “It’s about dressing up and feeling yourself.
“Since my graduate collocation at college, I was experimenting with wet-suiting, so that’s something that’s quite familiar to me in terms of consciousness of the body, the athletic culture around it and I suppose also my upbringing in Sydney [Australia] to here,” he added of spring’s scuba looks. This consciousness of the body — i.e., sex appeal — is something Lee does especially well, evident through his cult-like following and full-look-clad showgoers. On the runway, the designer debuted takes on these decade-spanning ideas — sharp, edgy, utilitarian tailoring; body-hugging, innovative knitwear (ranging from lengthy, body skimming gowns to cutout ribbed bodysuits, tanks and skin-baring bikini-style tops to a few heat-reactive, ‘90s hypercolor-inspired layers), and leather harness dressing — while tapping into retail-driven expansion.
“We’re opening some stores in the U.S., in Miami and New York — we really want to flesh out the accessories and communicate both the ready-to-wear and other ways you can buy into the brand,” he explained of the collection’s expanded assortment of footwear and bags, which boasted new riffs on signature palm leaf shapes. There were also new moto styles and stage-worthy, metallic fringe numbers — nods to his custom costumes made in collaboration with Rosalia for her ongoing Motomami World Tour.
