DZHUS Carbon Spring Summer 2017

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I'm sure by now you know I've got so much admiration for Ukrainian conceptual womenswear brand DZHUS, which is why it was such a pleasure to finally have the chance to meet the designer in person during the last Fashion Week in Paris. It is always amazing to see how she can take some small part of her national heritage and turn it into an impressive collection, all with her signature techniques and DZHUS craftsmanship.

Her Spring Summer 2017 collection is called Carbon. Carbon forms the key component for all known life on Earth. Carbon is a quintessence of black, the fundamental colour of DZHUS' identity. Carbon is coal, and I did not know that it is traditionally mined in Ukraine, the home of DZHUS. Carbon is graphite, which is used to draw harsh lines and delicate shadings, which are embodies in contoured edges and sheer textures of monochrome garments. And carbon is ashes, which will remain when we are gone, as a symbol of life's fragility and the eternal cycle of nature.

One theme that DZHUS uses in her collections is that of the uniform. This was most evident in her Spring Summer 2016 Pro-Forma collection. For Carbon, she explores the uniform of those coal miners in their rigid routine, their uniform and the need for utilitarian garments in their work. One of DZHUS' signature techniques is to use simple cuts with draping and taping to create transformative silhouettes. With this collection, there is the sense of structure, necessary for a utilitarian garment, with the raw edges reminiscent of those garments after a hard day's work.