‘Not a moment – it’s a movement’: 2021 Australian Fashion Laureate winners and finalists revealed

Style stars have been honoured at the 2021 Australian Fashion Laureate, where Romance Was Born was named Designer Of The Year. See the winners.

Romance Was Born was named Designer Of The Year, while Grace Lillian Lee brought the room to tears with her moving speech at the Australian Fashion Laureate.

Anna Plunkett and Luke Sales, of Romance Was Born, won the top honour at the prestigious industry awards, handed out at Mimi’s in Sydney.

“We really think about what we’re making and why we’re making it. We all have a responsibility … to have a purpose,” Plunkett said.

Being named Designer of the Year came after a “really challenging” two years for the brand.

“This year we launched a collection, it’s very important to us, and focuses on sustainability,” Sales said.

“All made from found objects, scraps of fabric, upcycling, and things we have been buying forever.

Sustainability is front and centre for Romance Was Born, pictured at Mimi’s for the Australian Fashion Laureate. Picture: Lauren Bamford

“It’s a big deal to us because it’s a passion,” he continued. “When we started we had bags of crap and we brought them together.”

To a room of roaring laughter in Coogee, Plunkett added: “Nothing’s changed”.

The design duo started Romance Was Born about 16 years ago, known for stunning upcycled embellishments and showstopping creations.

In May, the designers debuted their resort 2022 runway collection at AAFW featuring magenta opera gloves, sequins, and remnants from vintage clothes.

The winners of the 2021 Australian Fashion Laureate: Richard Jarman of Commas, Linda Jackson, Spell, Lauren Shaw, Grace Lillian Lee (centre), Bassike and Romance Was Born. Picture: Myles Kalus

‘IT’S A MOVEMENT’

Julie Shaw, of luxury resort label Maara Collective, was named the inaugural Indigenous Designer of the Year, a category in which Denni Francisco of Ngali, Grace Lillian Lee, and Lillardia Briggs-Houston of Ngarru Miimi were also finalists.

“It’s a huge honour, even just to be nominated in the category alongside these amazing women,” Shaw told Vogue.

“It’s really special that the Laureate has recognised our contributions to fashion by creating this award. I think it will just create a pathway for more Indigenous designers to be acknowledged in the Australian fashion industry.

“Through fashion, you can tell stories about the art and traditions of Indigenous culture. And it’s this platform that everyone can access and learn something from, which is pretty special.”

Julie Shaw was named Indigneous Designer of the Year. Picture: Lauren Bamford

Grace Lillian Lee, who founded First Nations Fashion + Design, won the Carla Zampatti Award for Excellence in Leadership – an award named in honour of the late designer, Zampatti.

“It’s a mirror we can finally look into and see ourselves,” Lee said, as she accepted her award.

“This is not a moment – it’s a movement.”

At Mimi’s in Coogee, Grace Lillian Lee won the inaugural Carla Zampatti Award for Excellence in Leadership. She brought the room to tears with her speech. Picture: Australian Fashion Laureate

Bassike was honoured for the brand’s achievements in sustainability. Picture: Lauren Bamford

‘I WANT TO HAVE A LEGACY’

Jordan Dalah’s clothes quite literally speak volumes.

The Australian designer – who presented his anti-silhouette and pillow-like collection at Fashion Week in June – was among the rising stars nominated for Emerging Designer of the Year at the Australian Fashion Laureate.

Dalah, a graduate of London’s prestigious Central Saint Martins, was branded a visionary after his debut show at Afterpay Australian Fashion Week.

Such was fanfare around his creations, a then-pregnant supermodel Georgia Fowler closed the show.

“I definitely push boundaries with what I do, I like to test what people have seen,” Dalah said.

Dalah described his designs as “kind of out-there”.

Georgia Fowler walks the runway during Jordan Dalah’s Afterpay Australian Fashion Week show in Sydney. Picture: Getty Images

A red hot look from Jordan Dalah’s show. Picture: Getty Images

Saving face. Picture: Getty Images

“I’m in Sydney and I am so proud to be a designer doing what I do in Australia,” Dalah said.

“Australian brands do incredibly well globally from a commercial perspective.

“I think about the commercial viability of everything because at the end of the day, I am a brand.
“What’s important for me as a new designer, you need to find your identity. Your identity is what will sustain you … not the amount of sales you make, as quickly as possible.

“I’m not here to quickly get in and get out. I want to have a legacy behind me.”

Jordan Dalah and model Koujayn Wiew his Woollahra studio. Picture: Justin Lloyd

Jordan Dalah was among the finalists for Emerging Designer of the Year at the Australian Fashion Laureate. Picture: Justin Lloyd

Jordan Dalah’s designs often feature bow and pillow-like shapes. Picture: Justin Lloyd

“I really want to kind of force my silhouette … onto people and making people comfortable with what I show them, not responding to what the market demands.”

Dalah’s brand is based at a studio on Oxford St and his clothes are manufactured in Sydney.

“In London, there’s a resurgence of young designers and therefore there’s a response by manufacturers to cater to young designers: to manufacture in small runs for them, to sample closely with them,” Dalah said.

“(In Australia), there’s not a lot of them. The skills should have never left Australia in the first place.”

Launched in 2018, Dalah’s eponymous label has been stocked at international retailers including Opening Ceremony and Dover Street Market, where it sits alongside Bottega Venta and Loewe.

‘Boring is dull.’ A Jordan Dalah design at AAFW. Picture: Getty Images

“I think that no taste is boring, and boring is dull. I’d rather people react in a funny way to what I do than have no reaction,” Dalah said.

“I like when people look at my stuff … and they don’t know what to do. They see it and they just don’t know how to respond.”

Backed by mega agency IMG, the Laureate recognises outstanding achievement in the fashion industry.

Also nominated in the emerging designer category were winner Richard Jarman of Commas, along with Julie Shaw (Maara Collective), and Jordan Gogos (Iordanes Spyridon Gogos).

Natalie Xenita, Vice president and managing director of IMG fashion Asia-Pacific, said the category recognised the future of Australian fashion.

Jordan Dalah is also nominated for the 2022 International Woolmark Prize. Picture: Getty Images

“It’s vital for the continued success of Australia’s fashion industry that we all support the new generation of innovators influencing the future of design here in Australia,”

Xenita said.

She said the finalists had “demonstrated their talent not only in design, but in harnessing fashion’s power as a medium for communicating the social and environmental issues impacting our industry and culture at large”.

Dalah is also a finalist in the 2022 International Woolmark Prize, which recognises emerging designers on a global scale.

The Australian Fashion Laureate winners are announced in Sydney on November 30.

AUSTRALIAN FASHION LAUREATE NOMINEES

DESIGNER OF THE YEAR

Romance Was Born – WINNER

Christopher Esber

Aje

Oroton

EMERGING DESIGNER OF THE YEAR

Jordan Dalah

Jordan Gogos

Richard Jarman – WINNER

Julie Shaw

SUSTAINABLE INNOVATION OF THE YEAR

Commas

Outland Denim

KITX

Bassike – WINNER

INDIGENOUS DESIGNER OF THE YEAR

Grace Lillian Lee

Julie Shaw, Maara Collective – WINNER

Ngarru Miimi

Ngali

People’s Choice, presented by Afterpay

Elizabeth Abegg and Isabella Pennefather, Spell

Australian Fashion Laureate Lifetime Achievement Award

Linda Jackson AO

Carla Zampatti Award for Excellence in Leadership, presented by Porsche

Grace Lillian Lee